The Chase
by Sharkness
Summary: Fresh from conquering Team Galactic, Detective Looker is sent to the far-off Unova region to hunt down and arrest six fugitive old men, once leaders of a criminal organisation called Team Plasma. At first, it sounds easy, but as it gets tough fast, and as a huge conspiracy unravels around him, is this a mission too far for the illustrious Detective?
1. End of Galactic

**A/N: Hey everyone it's Sharkness! This is an idea I had for a multi-chapter crime fic starring everyone's favourite detective, Looker! Please read and review, tell me how it's going, if it's good, if it's bad. Constructive criticism very welcome, as it helps me improve, but nothing too harsh and scathing please! :)**

**On with the show...**

A light early morning breeze blew through Veilstone City, picking up the leaves on the ground and twirling them around in a miniature blustery tornado. It was very quiet in the city. There were a couple of shoppers, arms already laden with shopping bags, sat outside the Department Store having a coffee and a natter. There was a small group of hungover, grumpy men outside the Game Corner, tired after spending the night gambling their cash away on the slot machines. And, as always, there was a gaggle of small children around the entrance to the Veilstone Gym, many disappointed at not being able to win against Maylene, a few lucky ones parading their badges around and celebrating as if they'd won the Sinnoh League. Otherwise, Veilstone was quiet.

From his bench outside the Pokemon Centre, one man watched the world pass by through his deep brown eyes, occasionally adjusting his black, combed over hair as the breeze messed it up. He was dressed smartly- he wore a white shirt with a black tie, black trousers and shoes and a burgundy waistcoat, with a long brown overcoat over the top. If you passed him by, you would have thought he was a lawyer, or perhaps a casually-dressed businessman. He was neither. He was Looker, Detective of the International Police. And he was relaxing.

For the past few months, Looker had been in Sinnoh investigating the shady Galactic Corporation, a company providing clean and renewable energy. However, in his investigations Looker had uncovered Team Galactic, an evil organisation whose boss, a rich philanthropist called Cyrus, was intent on destroying the universe and building a new one in his image. He had come very close too; at Spear Pillar atop Mount Coronet, Cyrus had nearly destroyed Creation. Only with the timely intervention of Looker, three young Trainers from Twinleaf Town, the Champion of Sinnoh Cynthia and the Legendary Giratina had Cyrus been defeated. Cyrus was now trapped in a separate, sealed off dimension ruled by Giratina.

But had Looker's job been done then? Oh no. The remnants of Team Galactic, led by the scientist Charon, had nearly awakened the Legendary Heatran at Stark Mountain, nearly causing a catastrophic volcanic eruption that would have destroyed Sinnoh. However, once again Looker had stopped them in their tracks, and now, finally, Team Galactic were down.

Looker sighed, his gaze shifting briefly to the north of Veilstone, where, on a high hillside, an imposing building loomed over the city. Galactic's HQ remained; ex-Commander Saturn, in an attempt to stay a free man, was now actually running the Team as a renewable energy corporation. Of the other Commanders, Mars and Jupiter had disappeared, Charon was under arrest, and Cyrus was trapped far away. Everything was truly over.

Beside Looker on the bench was his Croagunk, his sole Pokemon. Ever since Looker and Croagunk saw each other on the first day of Police Academy, they had formed a stunning team, one that many detectives in the force feared. Croagunk was currently sat beside Looker having a cigarette.

Looker sighed. "Put that out," he said softly, in a strange accent. There were hints of Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese and even Gaelic in there somewhere, but his colleagues simply described his accent as 'foreign'. "I thought we agreed neither of us would smoke, so we could keep fit?"

Croagunk shrugged, but didn't stop smoking. Instead, he pointed at the Veilstone Gym, and the gathering of people outside it. "Croa."

"What do you see?" Looker murmured, straining his eyes to see.

Croagunk rolled his eyes, before pointing again. First he pointed at a celebrating youngster, about 12 years old. Then he pointed at a group of three 16 year olds, skulking in a corner, talking among themselves and glaring at the celebrator. "Gunk."

Looker put two and two together. This happened a lot outside Gyms- some cocky person who'd just won would pick a fight with someone who'd lost, or some jealous people who'd wait for a winner and ambush them. "Do you think we should move them along?"

Croagunk gave a shrug. Over the years Looker had grown adept at interpreting Croagunk's body language and shrugs; this one said 'You're the policeman, you do whatever. But it's your ass on the line if it goes wrong'.

Looker tutted. "Fine," he said. "My ass on the line. I get it. Let's do it."

The duo got up and strolled over. There was quite a substantial crowd of young Trainers outside the Gym, but Looker made his way over to the group of haters, and walked up to their leader, a burly 16 year old with muscles that wouldn't have looked out of place in Maylene's Fighting-type Gym. "Good morning! How did your challenge go?"

The youth glared at him. "How d'ya think? Maylene gave us a kicking!"

Looker pretended to look sympathetic, and refused to be intimidated by the youth. "Oh no! That's a shame! Never mind though, you can always try again next time!"

The youth ignored this. "That little shit over there, look boys. Just cause he won, he thinks he's so tough."

The others grunted, still fixed on staring at the victorious kid, completely forgetting the presence of Looker.

The leader continued. "He ain't so tough, look at him. Wait till he gets onto the streets, we'll kick the shit out of him boys."

"Oh really?" Looker looked surprised. "Because you'll have to go through me to do that."

For the first time the trio took in Looker properly, and sneered at him.

"You?" the leader said. "What chance do you have against us three, old man?"

"I'm 27. Not that old. And it won't be easy for you three, will it Croagunk?" Croagunk made a 'Don't look at me' face.

The leader scoffed. "Pah! One pathetic little Croagunk? Are you serious? My Psychic-type Kadabra has a 4x type advantage! We'll take you out, then kick the shit out of the kid."

Looker smiled at the type advantage threat. Did the punks really think he hadn't thought of that? As Croagunk was his only Pokemon, he knew all his weaknesses and strengths, and to overcome Croagunk's major Psychic weakness Looker had taught him Sucker Punch and Faint Attack, two powerful Dark-type moves. He could easily take the youths.

But he wasn't going to. "So we're going to play it like that huh?" He reached into his pocket to pull out his ID, the plastic card that identified him as a detective of the International Police, and his Police badge. "Then I guess you'll have to come to the station with me."

Croagunk tried not to smile at the shocked looks on the youths' faces, and failed. They had been played like the fools they were.

"A p-p-policeman?" stammered the leader, his bravado suddenly gone. "Oh shit!"

"That's right," said Looker. "Now do I have to arrest you for malicious lingering, threats to assault a police officer and obstructing a police officer in his duty? Or are you just going to leave now?"

The trio looked at each other, then backed away, fast, before turning the corner out of Looker's sight. He heard their footsteps increase in pace as they ran away though. They weren't coming back any time soon.

"Good work Croagunk," he said, smiling.

Croagunk grinned, making the 'I've told you so' face, before he fist bumped Looker. The dream team had struck again!

As they walked away from the Gym, job well done, Looker's phone started ringing in his pocket, so he pulled it out quickly. "Detective Looker speaking."

"I know, otherwise I wouldn't have rung you, genius."

Looker smiled at the sarcastic reply. That was definitely the boss.

There were two main sections to the International Police; the policemen, and the detectives, both equal in rank (Looker's Detective Class 3 rank was the equivalent of a sergeant in the Police division). The commander of the Detective Department was Chief Inspector Charles LaDieux, Looker's overall superior, an ageing veteran who treated his officers well. It was LaDieux who commanded all detectives in all regions, and LaDieux who assigned Looker to the Galactic case, telling Looker to report everything directly to him.

"How are you sir?" Looker asked.

"Not bad Looker, though I'm getting a bit bored, sat here in this comfy office chair while my officers chase criminals and have all the fun."

"If you call being attacked by Golbat and spacemen with weird blue hair fun."

"At least you're out in the fresh air. I can FEEL myself putting on weight." Looker laughed. "Actually Looker, the Galactic case is the reason why I'm calling you."

"Sir?"

"The Commanders are all accounted for. We arrested Mars and Jupiter yesterday, trying to board a flight to Hoenn. Now, we're starting interrogation, and we're building up to a trial. Everything is running smoothly."

"What are you saying sir?"

"I'm saying we need a man of your talents elsewhere Looker. The others can handle this fine now, and I have a new case I'd like you on."

"Really sir?" If he was being totally honest, Looker would admit that he was getting bored in Sinnoh. He hated all the admin work after an investigation, preferring the action and the chase, and everything had been quiet for about a week. He'd done a bit of travelling, trained Croagunk a bit, but there was nothing left for him. His job was done, and it was time to move on.

"You sound wary Looker."

"No, no! I'm curious sir! What's the new case?"

"Well, are you aware of the Unova region to the north? I take it you are. Anyway, recently another evil Team, called Team Plasma, tried to take over Unova and nearly succeeded. You weren't aware, what with all the Galactic trouble, but Team Plasma almost took over the Unova Pokemon League with the region's Legendary Pokemon. Unova nearly crumbled."

"No way..."

"Yes way. Now Team Plasma's leadership is very complex. At the top is the King, N, who is on the run at the moment. He however was being manipulated into making decisions to take over Unova by his father, Ghetsis Harmonia, leader of the Seven Sages, seven old men who are N's immediate advisors and next in command to Team Plasma. Most Team Plasma members think they are allied to the King, but really its the Sages who run the show. Understand so far?"

"I understand."

"Now, the police situation is tricky. We stopped Plasma at the last possible minute, and were 100% successful in doing so. We have arrested Ghetsis, and Unova has sent officers in pursuit of N, but six of the Sages are still at large, on the run from the Police."

"So what's my job?"

"Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to hunt down the six remaining Sages of Team Plasma, arrest them and bring them to justice. They have scattered across the region, and it'll be difficult work finding them, so I need a capable man, a man I can trust."

"Interesting..." mused Looker. This sounded much easier than the Galactic case, and it was a refreshing change. "I'm tempted."

"Good. You and Croagunk are booked on a flight out of Jubilife City at 10:00 tomorrow, to land in Mistaltron City, Unova, at 12:00."

Looker paused, frowning. "Sir, you haven't really given me a choice here."

"I know. You are definitely going on this mission." LaDieux chuckled on the other end of the line. "Look Looker, it's six old men! It'll be easy once you find them, trust me."

"Sure?"

"Sure. Tell you what, I'll make you a deal. Do this well, and I'll promote you all the way to Detective Class 1. That's equal with the Police Captains, and means a big pay rise..."

Looker thought for a moment. "Double my pay, plus the double promotion, and I'll go."

LaDieux's laugh was much louder this time. "You cheeky git! You drive a hard bargain Detective Looker! Alright, double pay, and double promotion. And you what, I'm feeling generous. I'll throw in a 2 week holiday afterwards."

Looker grinned. "You're the best boss."

"I know. Is it a deal then?"

"Deal."

"Excellent! Now, enjoy your last day in Sinnoh! I hope it goes well in Unova!"

LaDieux hung up, and Croagunk looked expectantly up at Looker.

"LaDieux stood us down. Our Galactic mission is finally over," Looker said, as Croagunk cheered. "We have a new one now instead."

Croagunk made an 'Oh really?' face. "Gun cro?"

"You know the Unova region? We go there tomorrow, to track down and arrest six old men who tried to take down the Unovan government."

Croagunk pondered for a moment, before nodding, looking interested with it. "Croa!"

"Glad you like the sound of it," Looker said, smiling. "Now come on. Last day in Sinnoh, let's hit the town." Croagunk made a face at him. "Alright, I'll buy you a drink." Croagunk smiled at him. "Let's go."

Looker and Croagunk walked off in the direction of the Veilstone Department Store, to spend their last day in Sinnoh well before they flew off to Unova on a new mission. But little did they know that LaDieux was wrong; in no way would this be easy for them. They had no idea what they'd just thrown themselves into...

**A/N: So it's time for Looker and Croagunk to head out to Unova and take down the Sages. What trouble will they get themselves into, I wonder? ;) **

**Next chapter: Touchdown in Unova, the terrifying Ghetsis Harmonia, and Looker's search begins. Coming soon...**

**Please read and review, and I'll see you soon. Adios amigos! :D**


	2. Welcome to Unova

**A/N: Ta-da! Chapter 2 of the Chase! :)**

**I apologise, but this chapter will not feature Ghetsis as promised in last chapter. That would make my chapter way too long. Ghetsis will feature next chapter, but this chapter focuses on Looker's arrival in Unova.**

**On with the show...**

Looker had spent that last day in Sinnoh visiting all the friends he'd made, saying his goodbyes, promising to return soon to see everyone. He'd gone to the pub with Croagunk, played his last game in the Game Corner, and had woken up early in the morning looking forward to a new start, in a new region, on a new mission without a Team Galactic Grunt in sight.

Now, after an uneventful flight out of Jubilife, he was here. Unova. He'd arrived at Mistaltron City Airport, the largest airport in Unova and indeed the world, with all the hustle and bustle of a city, and collected his baggage quietly. Now, he was looking for his lift. LaDieux had said the Unova Police would send someone to collect him especially...

Ah, there. Looker spotted the policeman in the distance across the hall, waiting in the arrivals lobby for him. The policeman was very young (Looker guessed 19, probably a new recruit), and about 5 foot 9 inches. He wore the standard International Police uniform, immaculately clean, but no hat, which would have obscured his spiked up brown hair. Looker gave him a once over and noticed that despite his medium build, there were the outlines of some serious muscles underneath the uniform; this guy was strong.

"Come on," Looker said to Croagunk, who nodded, and they wheeled their luggage over to the policeman. As Looker got closer, he laughed; the policeman had made a sign to let Looker know he was there for him, but in his haste the ink had run, and instead of 'Looker', the sign read 'Hooker'.

As yet another passenger shot a disgusted look at the policeman to his bewilderment, Looker cleared his throat, and the policeman spun around, looking at Looker with orange eyes, before dashing forward.

"Ah! You're Detective Looker!" he said warmly, offering his hand. "Welcome to Unova!"

Looker shook his hand, noting the strength of the grip. "Thank you. Yes, I am Detective Looker." He produced his ID just to prove it. "And this here's Croagunk." Croagunk nodded at the policeman. "And you are..."

The policeman saluted with one hand and gave Looker his ID with the other. "Officer Reece Davis sir! The Commissioner sent me to come get you and bring you to Castelia HQ for briefing."

"Officer Davis," Looker said, scrutinising the ID, "this says you're 18."

Another salute. "I'd prefer Reece sir, if that's all the same to you. And it's okay to be confused sir; in Unova, you can join the Police at 16."

"Ah," Looker nodded, understanding. "Of course. Thank you Reece. Now, shall we head to Castelia?"

"Right away sir!"

Looker sighed. "Reece, please stop with the sir. I'd prefer Looker."

"No problem!" As they walked towards the exit, Reece continued, "Say, do you know why people are looking at me in a funny way? Do people in Sinnoh not like policemen or something?"

Croagunk smiled, before flipping Reece's sign around so he could see.

Reece grinned sheepishly. "Oh dammit! Not the best sign to carry around!" He threw it in a bin, and looked embarrassed as his eyes turned yellow.

Croagunk looked disturbed, and Reece smiled understandingly. "A very rare eye condition. My emotions affect the colour of my eyes. For example orange is happy, blue is sad..."

"Ah," Looker said. "That must be quite cool."

"Not really, when love and anger are both red, and you can't really keep secrets because your eyes betray you."

"Oh." By now they had reached Reece's car, a Police liveried Lincoln Towncar. Croagunk bundled the luggage into the boot, before he slid into the back seat and fell asleep, while the humans got in the front and Reece drove the Towncar away from the airport.

The drive took an hour, thanks to Reece flicking the siren on and cutting through the traffic at speed, and it was very interesting to Looker. For starters, he got to see a huge amount of Unova, and realised how varied the region was. Reece's route took him past the Chargestone Cave, which Reece said had 'huge fluctuating magnetic fields that mess the place up', and into Driftveil City, the bustling industrial port city. The Driftveil Drawbridge was swung open for the Police car, and after passing through the windswept meadows they passed through the vibrant Nimbasa City, and south through the hot deserts of Route 4 into Castelia. Such variety in Unova impressed Looker.

Looker got out and ate his packed lunch as the world flew by, and he chatted with Reece to pass the time, mostly about Looker's mission to stop Galactic in Sinnoh, which Reece was hugely impressed by. He in turn gave Looker quite a lot of valuable information- little titbits about landmarks they passed, and concise histories of each city they went through. Plus, he helped Looker recognise several of the Unova species of Pokemon they passed on their journey- by the end of it Looker could identify Sandile, Swanna, Deerling, Boldore, Maractus, Tranquill and Foongus, to name a few.

"Here we are," Reece called out, waking Croagunk. "Castelia City."

The towers loomed everywhere, piercing shards of metal and glass that rose into the clouds, high above the rest of the metropolis. The streets were packed with cars and commuters, yet the Police Towncar made it to a nondescript tower in the midst of a cluster of skyscrapers in the inner city. It was, at only 10 storeys high, dwarfed by the others, and looked like a normal office block. But this was the HQ of the Unova Police.

Getting out of the Towncar, Looker and Croagunk followed Reece inside, where they were greeted by a wizened old desk sergeant whose name badge read 'Forsyth'.

Reece saluted. "Sergeant Forsyth sir! Brought Detective Looker here to meet the Commissioner, sir!"

"Eh, what?" croaked the old man Forsyth, standing up to squint at Looker and Croagunk, before he remembered. "Ah yes, Looker! Right this way if you please."

Croagunk mock-saluted, and Looker kicked him for taking the mickey as Forsyth showed them to an elevator.

"All the way up," said Reece as the lift doors slid shut. "The Commissioner's office is floor 10."

"What's it like here?"

"Not bad. We're close to a few of the good local restaurants, and we are very successful here when we get a case..."

"I sense a but here."

"Yeah. There really aren't that many cases. Plus, the Police gets half the funding of the Fire Brigade and the Rangers, so we're very short staffed."

"You're 5 foot 9, I wouldn't call that short."

"Ha!"

The lift doors slid open as the bell pinged, and Looker let Reece lead the way. 4 Police Officers in a line saluted him as he came in, following Reece to a desk in the middle of the room with the sign 'Commissioner of Unova' on it, and the swivel chair behind it turned...

Thomas Aurelius, Police Commissioner for Unova, sprawled in his reclining office chair, a very large man with a very large gut. He was completely bald, with blue eyes that peered at Looker over wire-rimmed glasses, and idly played with a broken bit of the armrest as he stared.

Looker saluted. "Detective Class 3 Looker sir," he said, handing over his ID. "Sent by the International Police to take over the Sages case."

"Hm," Aurelius grunted, looking at the ID. "Do you have a first name, Looker?"

Looker shook his head. "No sir. My real parents called me Looker before I was orphaned. The adoption agency didn't tell me their surname, and I didn't want my foster surname. So I stuck with just Looker."

"How peculiar. Well, welcome to Unova Detective. This is now your assignment, your jurisdiction, your job to get this done. I'll introduce you to your team and brief you, then you can begin."

He pointed at Reece, not getting out of his chair. "You already know Officer Davis. Our youngest recruit, he's a jack of all trades, master of none. He's pretty new to this, so teach him well. And of course, you've met our desk sergeant Forsyth, the man in charge of admin."

He went on to the other Officers, starting with a male Corporal, about Looker's age, with brown hair and green eyes, and a quietly intelligent look about him. "This is our Head of ICT, Corporal Damon. Corporal Damon is in charge of gathering intelligence and data from all across Unova, from any computer he can access."

Aurelius moved on to a raven-haired Chinese girl, whose big black eyes were framed by big black-rimmed specs. "This is Corporal Maeda. She's our strongest Pokemon battler, not through brawn, but through brains." She smiled.

Next came a very muscly, towering man, who looked older than Looker. He had a rugged face, oddly coloured blue hair and small eyes. "This is Corporal Schulz, our interrogation officer, aid to prosecuting lawyers, and is a strong physical presence to boot." Schulz nodded, curtly.

Finally, Aurelius introduced a blonde haired woman, the same age as Looker, whose blue eyes were deep and intense. "And finally, Sergeant Farrell, our expert in pursuit tactics. Farrell can drive anything, fly anything, repair anything and is a well rounded Officer. Use her well."

"And this is it?" asked Looker.

"You'll have about 10 standard foot officers you can direct, but I can spare no more. I'm sorry, but after the recent events with Team Plasma Unova is in uproar. It's a tough job to keep the peace everywhere, but to make up for it here you have my finest, elite officers." Looker nodded, understanding. "Now, onto business. I take it you know all about the Sages?"

"Inspector LaDieux gave me a report to read on the way here about what their role is, but I'm unclear as to who exactly they are."

"Very well, a quick presentation is needed. Corporal Damon, the projector please."

The room lights flickered and the wall behind the Commissioner was suddenly covered with the picture of a Japanese old man, wearing a brown business suit, a green tie and a scowl. "As you know, there are seven Sages in Team Plasma, six of whom are on the run. This is one of them, Sage Ryoku. Corporal Damon will take you through now."

Corporal Damon stepped forward. "Thanks sir. So yes, Ichiri Ryoku, Kantonese, born in Celadon City. He speaks with a Japanese accent, and his surname, which means emerald green in Japanese, corresponds with the two types he is a master of..."

Looker realised he was being tested. "Bug and Grass?"

"Very good! Ryoku made a lot of money by being one of the founding fathers of Game Freak, who have now spread throughout the Pokemon world, before turning to Plasma."

A new picture showed another brown suited old man, this one with very pale skin, a blue tie, and traces of ginger left in his hair/moustache. "This is Sage Alastair Gorm, of Snowpoint City Sinnoh, has a Scottish accent, and specialises in Water, Ice and Flying types. Investigations lead us to believe that Gorm is CEO of Clan McCullen Inc, the largest weapons manufacturers in the world."

"Blimey..." said Looker.

"Mmm. And he's not the only prominent businessman in the Sages." The next slide showed another pale skinned old man, with deep black eyes and a huge Kaiser moustache, to go with a brown tie. "Sage Matthias Bronius, a Unova native, from Driftveil City. He has a German accent, and is a Rock, Ground and Steel type specialist. He owns a huge business empire, starting with mines in Driftveil, Oreburgh Mine in Sinnoh, Iron Island in Sinnoh, and Fuego Ironworks in Sinnoh. Plus, Bronius owns Subterra Inc, producer of three quarters of the worlds' digging equipment, is a huge benefactor to archaeological expeditions worldwide, and funded the Pewter City and Oreburgh City Museums."

"These Sages are big business," interrupted Aurelius. "Now you see why we have to keep them secret from the public until we capture all of them; the public outcry will be huge. Corporal Damon, continue please."

"Yes sir." A new slide showed a red-tied old man with a normal face; in fact, you'd have easily passed him by without a second glance. "This is Sage Willem Rood, of Mauville City Hoenn. He is a tricky customer, specialising in Fire and Dragon types, and has a Dutch accent. Rood is the only Sage who hasn't earned their money- Rood comes from a Hoennese family of noble heritage."

The slide switched to a new old man, thin moustached, purple-tied. What made him stand out was his eyes; close together, narrowed, looking suspiciously at the camera. He looked EVIL. "Sage Francois Zinzolin, French accented, from Hearthome City Sinnoh- a distant relative of Fantina. Zinzolin is a specialist of Poison, Psychic, Ghost AND Dark type Pokemon, plus has a reputation as a ferocious banker and property broker. He is not to be messed with."

The final slide showed a younger (yet still old), more tanned man. "And finally, Sage Alessandro Giallo, from Goldenrod City Johto. He has an Italian accent, and specialises in Electric and Fighting type Pokemon. Giallo is perhaps strongest of all the Sages; when Johto tried and failed to get its own independent Pokemon League, so they wouldn't have to use Kanto's, Giallo was on the cards to be their Champion. That's how strong he is. And that's your lot. The Sages, of Team Plasma."

The screen faded to black, leaving Looker to take it all in- there was a mammoth task ahead of him, to capture all of the Sages, all strong, powerful businessmen. This didn't look like the easy mission that LaDieux promised him.

Aurelius interrupted his train of thought. "I know what you're thinking, there's only six of these Seven Sages on the screen. We have the seventh Sage, the ringleader, Ghetsis Harmonia in custody."

"Ghetsis," Looker said. "LaDieux told me all about him. The true architect of the Team Plasma coup."

"Indeed. We're waiting to capture the other Sages before we try Ghetsis; maybe one of them will cave under pressure and drop him in it. I think you should all go and see him, see if you can get anything out of him that we haven't been able to. Plus, it'll give you a chance to meet your team, and your team a chance to meet you."

"You sure sir? Don't want us to get stuck in with the intel?"

"Go and see Ghetsis." Aurelius insisted, ushering Looker and his new team hastily towards the lift. "I have important business. I'll see you later Detective."

As the lift doors pinged shut slowly, Croagunk made a 'That was suspicious face'.

"Well, that was rude," said Reece, the others sniggering.

Looker turned, smiling. "I take it I'm not surrounded by fans of the Commissioner?" More laughs.

"He's an idiot," said Reece. "Doesn't know how to treat people, and he's very selfish."

Looker nodded. "Well, nice to meet you team. Please call me Looker, not sir. I hate the official and rank stuff, so I'd prefer to call you by first names."

The blonde woman, Sergeant Farrell, smiled. "So would I. I'd like Tash please."

"Matt," said Corporal Damon, shaking Looker's hand.

Looker worked it out. "Matt Damon? Are you serious?"

Matt laughed. "I wish! I need to work out more."

Corporal Schulz shook his hand, smiling. "Bastian," he said thickly, nearly crushing Looker's hand in a bear paw. "I've heard all 'bout you an' Team Galactic! It's an honour!"

Looker smiled modestly. "My pleasure."

Corporal Maeda came last. "I'm Anna," she said softly, shyly, quietly, with a hint of a lisp. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," said Looker. "I already know you, Reece," at this Reece smiled, "and everyone, this is Croagunk, my partner in crime investigation."

Croagunk threw a wave. "Gunk!"

Looker sighed. "This lift does take forever..."

"Tell me about it," said Tash. "We keep telling the Commissioner we need a new one, but he always ignores us."

"I hate him," spat Schulz. "If it wasn't for the fact I can't get 'nother job in Unova, I'd leave. He's selfish, arrogant, and treats us like dirt."

The others nodded. "You know," Anna piped up timidly, "I wonder why he wants us to spend all day doing something we've done three times before. I mean, Ghetsis isn't spilling the beans on the other Sages. Surely we'd be better off getting stuck in straight away?"

"Mmm," said Reece. "And why he wanted us out of his office so urgently is odd too. What's his urgent business?"

"Ah well," Looker chimed in. "Its slightly odd, but never mind. Let's go see Ghetsis, to keep him happy. And I tell you what, if we make it quick with Ghetsis, then I'll take you guys out for coffee and donuts, on me. We can discuss things, and bunk off for the rest of the day. I'm feeling generous. Sound good?"

Croagunk nodded fervently and the others chorused 'Yeah!'. It sounded like a good plan; Looker and the team could get to know each other, and Looker could be further enlightened on Team Plasma. But first, an interview with Ghetsis Harmonia beckoned...

**A/N: So that's the dream team! Reece belongs to author smash619, winner of my competition from my Slendermon fic. That reminds me, I'm having another competition here- there is an anime reference to Looker buried deep within this chapter. First person to PM me the right answer wins an OC in my next story :)**

**Next chapter- Ghetsis Harmonia (no, really, this time I'm serious), a chance encounter, and some familiar faces... Coming soon...**

**Please read and review! Until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	3. Ghetsis

**A/N: Here we are with Chapter 3 of the Chase folks! :D I was a little late I know, but Slendermon took a lot of time with editing, and a whole load of other stuff distracted me from my writing :/ thank you everyone so far anyway, for reviewing and favouriting. You guys are the best! :)**

**In this chapter, we FINALLY get to meet the mastermind of Team Plasma's schemes, the architect... Ghetsis! Plus, a little bit more, as we meet another shifty character :)**

**On with the show...**

Looker and the team stepped out of the incredibly slow elevator on the ground floor, to be greeted by the ancient desk sergeant Forsyth, up and walking about with the aid of a cane.

"Just going to have a chat with Ghetsis, Sergeant Forsyth," called Matt.

"Eh, what?"

"Going to take Looker to see Ghetsis!" Matt shouted, repeating himself.

"Oh, right! Fine, fine. Here, have the keys!" Forsyth passed Matt a ring with several keys on it, then went back to his desk.

"Deaf old sod," Matt muttered, as he led the group to a door off to the side, unlocking it. "This way to the cells."

Looker shook his head at Forsyth's antics as they entered a long corridor that led them down the side of the building. "How old is he exactly?"

"Dunno," said Bastian cheerfully, as they walked quickly, with him leading the way. "He was here before Aurelius became Commissioner."

"No one knows his name," added Anna softly.

"Yeah!" said Tash. "I've been here over five years, and he was nearing retirement age when I started."

"He's just Forsyth," said Matt. "Always first in, unlocks the doors, does the cleaning, gets the coffee and tea, does the paperwork, locks up after we all leave. He's just there in the background."

Croagunk panted as they finally reached the end of the corridor, groaning. "Croa..."

Reece looked like he understood. "I know, long way. We have to keep the cells as far away from the streets as possible."

Looker was working things out. "We're still on ground level for the cells? So an escaped prisoner could walk out onto Castelia's streets?"

"Not that simple," explained Bastian. "The walls at the back and sides are all thick concrete, and the only emergency exit is through the evidence room, which is heavily guarded at all times. All of that area is on CCTV at all times, on a video feed that goes directly to Forsyth's desk."

Looker nodded, understanding, before Bastian produced a key and led them all into a small, white washed room, sparse and plain, with another door on the other side. In the middle of the room there was a desk with two chairs, one on each side and a filing cabinet sat in the corner.

"This is the interrogation room," said Tash, motioning Looker to one of the chairs, which he took. "We'll go and get Ghetsis for you right away, and we can have a little chat."

"I'll go and get him," volunteered Reece, letting himself out of the other door, taking Bastian's keys as he went.

Matt handed Looker a thick slab of paper sheets. "Here. Ghetsis' file. Have a little read while we wait."

Looker sat, in silence, reading, while the other officers slouched at various points in the room. Most of this information in the file was familiar stuff to him, having being briefed thoroughly on his adversary by LaDieux before travelling to Unova.

Ghetsis Harmonia was a Unova native. How old he was, where he was born, and who his parents were was unknown; Ghetsis' life was shrouded in mystery. What was known about him was that three months ago he had started making public speeches for Team Plasma, commanding the Grunts, assisting the Sages and 'advising' the king (his foster son, N). Then, when N became the chosen hero of the Legendary Zekrom, Ghetsis set his plan into motion, and N defeated the Unova Champion Alder under his guidance.

At this point Team Plasma were set to rule over Unova. Ghetsis had constructed a huge Castle under the League, which would be the seat of Plasma's throne, and in one room Ghetsis had hidden a device capable of transferring every Pokemon in Unova's PC network to his own PC. As N's advisor, and owner of every captive Pokemon in Unova, Ghetsis would rule. But not so- several young Trainers had defeated N and Ghetsis, the former fleeing, the latter being arrested for treason. And here they were now...

Looker read and re-read the papers, searching for clues, and after ten long minutes Reece finally returned to the room, eyes yellow, looking sheepish.

"Sorry guys," he said. "Got myself locked in a cupboard on the way to get him."

Looker started to smile, but he was cut off by a drawling voice from behind Reece. "Well well. Even during my lengthy stay here police competence hasn't improved one iota."

A tall man, thin with broad shoulders, moved into the room. Looker guessed him at 6 foot 6, 2 metres, wearing silk robes with slightly gaudy patterning and impressive castle-like battlements on the top. He was middle aged, his tea-green hair starting to grey and thin out through age, but his distinctive features were his eyes. A bright shade of red, they reflected many things- the contempt the man held to his captors, his amusement at their downfall, his boredom at being summoned for questioning again and a hidden malice deep within. He radiated indifference and arrogance, and Looker felt wary around him- here was a man who had an incredibly strong aura of evil around him.

Ghetsis Harmonia looked around the interrogation room at large, making no effort to sit down in the interrogation chair, staying exactly where he was. "I have told you everything I want to say. I will say no more. And yet you insist on calling me in time after time..."

"Ah, but this time is different," Looker said loudly, speaking up. "Now you answer questions to me."

Ghetsis took him in properly for the first time, and Looker hid his amusement as, for the briefest of seconds, Ghetsis' arrogance flickered, and a look of recognition and slight apprehensiveness glimmered in those deep red eyes. But Ghetsis recovered very quickly, even as Croagunk fixed him with a withering glare.

"Ah, Detective Looker," he said, the trace of a smile on his lips, while those eyes bored into the back of Looker's skull. "I've heard all about your conquest of Team Galactic in Sinnoh. I see the International Police has sent its finest."

Looker clapped sarcastically, trying to mimic Ghetsis' indifference, all the while maintaining that stare. Looker knew the key to a successful interrogation- to not let the opponent gain the upper hand emotionally. Letting Ghetsis know that his arrogance, evil and bored air was unnerving Looker would let Ghetsis win.

"Take a seat. I admire a man who does his homework," Looker said.

"As do I," Ghetsis replied, indicating Looker's papers, sitting down as Reece reluctantly uncuffed him. "But heed my warning Detective; Plasma are above the incompetent Galactic spacemen by a mile. You have your work cut out on this mission."

"We shall see," said Looker, waving a hand as if not caring. "Oh, and by the way, do not insult my fellow officers." Looker had seen Reece's eyes flare dark red out of anger when Ghetsis had talked down to him, and wanted to let Ghetsis know it wasn't appreciated.

"Now," Looker leaned forward, "tell me this Ghetsis. Where are the others?"

Ghetsis mimed pantomime innocence. "What others?"

Croagunk acted enlightened, before leaning over to Looker and whispering.

"Of course," Looker nodded. "Officer Davis, did you just hear this man say that there are no other leaders of Team Plasma?"

"I did sir," Reece said, trying to hide a smile.

"Then please inform the Commissioner we have all the information required for the trial of Mr Harmonia as the sole leader of the treason-committing Team Plasma, and schedule it for a date next week."

Ghetsis sighed. "Fine, you win Detective. I take it you're talking about the other Sages?"

Looker smiled; he had Ghetsis where he wanted him. "At last! He knows who we're after, after all! Now we can get down to business."

"Sir," Anna said quietly, "couldn't we charge Ghetsis here for the obstruction of police in their duty? We could get him sentenced for that, get him out of the way and then worry about the rest of the Team Plasma case afterwards."

Ghetsis overheard. "You could. But then the prosecutors would drag up my Team Plasma connections, and the case would suddenly become ten times longer. You won't win that way."

Looker leaned forward. "Then tell us where the other Sages are, let us know how to get to them, and we can get this done."

Ghetsis shrugged. "Why? It's my freedom on the line here. What do I gain by giving it away?"

"The moral high ground that you did the right thing?" Matt said sarcastically.

"Besides," Ghetsis continued, glowering at Matt, "I do not know what my Sages are doing. I lack the knowledge of where they may hide from the law."

Croagunk had had enough of Ghetsis' uncooperativeness. Charging up a Poison Jab, he slammed it down into the table, a centimetre from Ghetsis' hand, before glaring straight into Ghetsis' eyes. Looker had seen Croagunk do it many times before in interrogation; when Croagunk got pissed off, he used the Poison Jab technique to intimidate them into answering the questions, and it normally worked.

Ghetsis however seemed unaffected by the glare, and was almost smiling at the fact he'd annoyed Croagunk. "Well well, the frog is trying to play good cop, bad cop with me. I'd appreciate it Detective if you called off your pet Pokemon lackey. I do not appreciate threats of violence."

"Croagunk is not my pet," Looker said. "He holds Detective Class 5 rank in the Police, and is equal in rank to officer Davis here. He is my assistant and partner- he does what he does necessary. I wouldn't call him a pet if I were you."

"And anyway," Bastian said, "Croagunk has a right to be pissed off. Cut the bullshit Ghetsis, you know where they are. Now tell us and stop delaying."

Suddenly Tash's phone started ringing, the theme tune to 'Blue Bloods'. She picked it up and answered it, before whoever called her held a very one-sided conversation.

She hung up. "Looker, its the boss. He says our time is up with Ghetsis, and he's standing us down for the rest of the day."

"He's probably had enough of the bully tactics you goons use," Ghetsis remarked quietly.

"Shut up," said Looker calmly, smugly smiling inside as he saw Ghetsis' shocked face at being talked down to. "Why is he standing us down, and what happens now?"

"Apparently," Tash said, "he says its useless to start any more of the Sage investigation today, so we can have the rest of the day off. He says we've had enough time in with Ghetsis anyway. And he says not to worry about Ghetsis' escort, he's sent someone."

There was a knock on the door, and the old man Forsyth hobbled through. "I'm here for Ghetsis," he rasped.

Looker nodded, standing up, Croagunk jumping on his shoulder like a pirate's parrot. "Come on then people, we're no longer needed." As an afterthought he walked over to Ghetsis and shook the Plasma leader's hand, noting how even then Ghetsis tried to crush his hand, trying to gain a psychological advantage. "A pleasure to talk to you. I promise it won't be long before we have your Sages under lock and key."

Ghetsis smiled as Forsyth cuffed him. "We shall see. Heed my advice Detective; it pays not to fall into the trap of being rash around Team Plasma. The last Detective was too keen, a hotshot, who thought she could outsmart us. Do you want to know what happened?"

"I'm curious, go on."

Ghetsis smiled faintly. "She was found under the Skyarrow Bridge chained to a concrete Conkeldurr's pillar. She drowned to death under the murky water, alone and helpless."

"I shall try not to go the same way," Looker said, trying not to grimace.

Ghetsis shook his head as Forsyth started to lead him away. "A great pity Detective, that a man of your talents really has no hope here. You have no idea what you have got yourself into, and no hope of surviving. Team Plasma always wins."

"I shall look forward to our next little chat. Goodbye Ghetsis."

As the door closed behind Forsyth and Ghetsis, Reece sighed. "Phew. Glad that's over. Ghetsis makes my skin crawl."

Looker didn't hear him. Looker was still focused on Ghetsis' last words, the ominous warnings he'd given Looker, and the almost mocking smile etched on that face. Ghetsis knew something he wasn't telling Looker; he was hiding something huge.

Looker had to be much more wary now...

"How long were we in there?" Anna asked as they all walked out of interrogation and towards the lobby.

Matt checked his watch. "Half an hour, with Reece getting locked in a cupboard and all."

Reece grinned, eyes flashing yellow again. "Sorry I wasted time guys. As repayment, let's all go to Cafe Sonata. Food and drink's on me."

"You sure we're allowed to bunk off at a cafe?" Anna asked.

"The Commissioner did say we're all off duty," Looker said. "And no Reece, I'll pay. I AM the new guy here."

Everyone cheered, and the crew headed out of HQ into the bustling city of Castelia, ready to relax...

**(*****)**

25 minutes later, Looker and co were sat at a table in Cafe Sonata, rated the best cafe in Castelia City, eating cake and drinking coffee. Everyone had shown Looker around the city he would call home, pointing out what the huge skyscrapers were used for, and where the nicest places were. Looker had bought Croagunk a Casteliacone, the city's famous frozen treat, and Croagunk savoured it while the others ate and drank, chatting.

The other officers were enjoying Looker's talk of Team Galactic and how he'd eventually overcome them. Looker was modest, and would have preferred to talk about his new teammates, but the others insisted on hearing how Looker outsmarted a group who nearly destroyed the universe.

Looker took a sip of his cappuccino. "And that was it," he said. "Croagunk and I had hidden out in Stark Mountain, waiting in disguise for the moment when Charon tried to raise Heatran. Then when he tried, Croagunk stole the Magma Stone off him, I called in backup, and the last of Team Galactic's leaders was dealt with."

"Wow," Reece said through a mouthful of chocolate brownie. "You really did that?"

"Mm. And that was that."

"And that was that," echoed Tash. "I wish this investigation was as easy as Galactic."

"Oh believe me, Galactic were insanely difficult to put down," said Looker. "No way was it easy."

"Still," said Bastian, gulping a mouthful of espresso, "at least it was over in 3 months, even if it was hard, even if Galactic nearly destroyed the universe. We're still going at 5 months."

"Tell me," Looker said, taking a bite from a slice of coffee cake, "was what Ghetsis said about 'the other Detective' true?"

Matt nodded, finishing his lemon sponge. "Unfortunately yes. A while back, the elite of the Unova Police got suspicious of Ghetsis for the first time. He kept going from place to place making speeches about 'Trainers releasing Pokemon', 'natural harmony', and stuff like that, and often started riots."

"The beginnings of Team Plasma," Looker remarked.

"Exactly. Naturally, the Police were suspicious, so they assigned a Detective to watch over Ghetsis and investigate him."

Anna broke in. "The Detective was Kate Laudigan, in her young twenties. She was Unova's finest, never failing to find culprits or solve cases. But she started to believe her own hype too much, and started making costly mistakes on the case."

Matt took over. "She disappeared, mysteriously. Then a week ago, when Ghetsis was brought into custody, divers discovered her drowned body beneath the Skyarrow Bridge."

"My God. Ghetsis really is a nasty man, isn't he?" Looker said. He said it a bit too loudly, so everyone else in the cafe heard him, but one person reacted to it. Even seated facing away from Looker, Looker could tell he'd made the ears of an old man, wearing a smart brown business suit, prick up and start paying attention without turning round.

Tash, sat next to Looker, noticed it too, and was suspicious. "Yeah, GHETSIS is a horrible man. I'm glad TEAM PLASMA is no more, even if the SAGES are still fugitives."

As Tash emphasised each word loudly, the old man twitched, before getting up at the 'Sages' part, heading towards the exit of the cafe. Looker noticed this, and made a show of downing his coffee hurriedly. "Well gang, let's go. We can't be sat around here when we should be ARRESTING SAGES."

That did it. The old man jumped into the air in shock, turning to face Looker, and Looker finally saw his face- pale, with a thin moustache, and the most suspicious, evil eyes in the world. And then there was the purple tie...

"Zinzolin!" Reece yelled, leaping out of his chair. "Stop in the name of the law!"

Panic flared in the eyes of Sage Zinzolin, who looked exactly as he did in the photo provided to Looker, before he turned and bolted. Zinzolin disappeared FAST.

"After him!" Bastian shouted. The police, including Looker, all sprang out of their chairs and out of the cafe door, in pursuit of the sprinting Sage.

Zinzolin couldn't half move fast for an old man. Looker couldn't believe a wanted criminal would be so naive to go into a public cafe out of disguise, and he couldn't believe the speed. Tash, pursuit specialist, took the lead through the narrow streets, and Looker allowed her to lead them into a dead-end alleyway, which Zinzolin had accidentally attempted to flee down.

"Alright, it stops here Zinzolin," Looker said, flashing his ID to the panting Sage. "I'm Detective Looker, in charge of the Team Plasma case, and you're under arrest for attempted treason."

"You're nicked chummy," said Bastian, stepping forward.

Zinzolin swore at him in French, pulling a Pokeball from his belt. "Ah ha," the Sage said in a heavy French accent, "is zat so, mes amis? I don't zink zat's a good idea. Drapion!"

The huge Ogre Scorp Pokemon appeared in the narrow alley, snarling at the officers, who all stepped back.

"Dammit!" Matt yelled. "Our Pokemon are all at the Pokemon Centre, healing after yesterday's Police Battle Tournament! We can't fight him!"

"Not all," Reece and Looker chorused. Croagunk hopped from Looker's shoulder, and Reece pulled out a Pokeball, from which a shiny Porygon-Z emerged.

"Wait, what?" Zinzolin said, shocked at the sight of the rare Porygon-Z.

"Yeah, that's right!" Reece said, grinning. "My pride and joy, a present from my dad! Now Porygon-Z, use Psychic!"

It was Zinzolin's turn to smile. "Funny Monsieur! Drapion is part Dark type! Cross Poison!"

The massive Drapion dodged a Poison Jab from Croagunk with ease, before using Cross Poison to knock Looker's Pokemon away. Reece had ordered Porygon-Z to use Ice Beam, which struck Drapion's tail, encasing the tail pincer in ice, putting it out of action. However, Drapion roared like an angry Tauros, gritting fangs against the pain, before smashing the tail against Croagunk to break the ice.

Croagunk was knocked out by the blow, and Drapion hit hard against Porygon-Z, but, all credit to him, Reece held out. He managed two Tri Attacks and another Ice Beam on Drapion, but the Sage's strong Pokemon didn't seem too hurt by them. Reece's Pokemon in turn was hit by two Iron Tails, two Bug Bites and another Cross Poison, putting Porygon-Z out of action after a harsh fight.

As a dejected Reece returned his Pokemon and Drapion roared, still standing, Zinzolin smiled. "Well, zat was fun."

"I underestimated you," Looker said quietly, cradling the unconscious Croagunk in his arms.

"We are Team Plasma. We are ze elite. Team Rocket and Team Galactic drew too much attention, and didn't have ze power to achieve. But we are stronger. And we will rule.."

"You won't win next time," Looker said. "We'll take you and the others down, and bring Team Plasma to justice."

Zinzolin muttered something quietly into a walkie-talkie, then spoke up. "You have no hope Detective. Team Plasma will rise again and take control. A region will crumble beneath our feet. And zis time, nozzing will stop us."

Suddenly the air around Zinzolin shimmered, and three black-clad, grey-haired people suddenly appeared in a triangle around the Sage.

"Detective, meet ze Shadow Triad," Zinzolin said, smiling evilly, indicating the trio. "Zey are ninjas, assassins, highly trained, able to teleport. Zey are our weapon of choice."

"How can they teleport?" Bastian asked, bewildered.

Zinzolin returned his Drapion, and tapped the side of his nose. "Zat's our secret. And Detective?"

"Yes?"

Zinzolin waved. "Good luck searching for ze ozzers."

The Triad member nearest Looker gave him a little nod, before the ninjas all grabbed Zinzolin and teleported away, leaving Looker and co in an empty alley, cheated out of an arrest. But Looker didn't feel too disappointed. Sure, they could have been better- they could have arrested Zinzolin, and not had two Pokemon knocked out. But this was Looker's first chase in Unova, just 6 hours after leaving Sinnoh, and now he knew what he was up against with the Sages. .

The Sages probably thought they had the upper hand over Looker and co. But Looker had only just begun. And he was determined not to let another one get away, no matter what it took. Team Plasma wouldn't know what hit them...

**(****)**

In another part of Unova entirely, a phone started ringing, and was picked up by its owner.

"Yes?" asked a clipped, precise voice.

"The new Detective for the Team Plasma case arrived in Unova this morning," came the reply.

"And?"

"It's Looker."

There was a pause. "Not the best we could have hoped for."

"I know. Did you know, 6 hours in the job and already the man nearly cornered Zinzolin in Castelia City?"

"I didn't. Zinzolin needs to be more careful, especially around a Detective who took down Team Galactic." There was a brief pause. "Did Zinzolin give anything away?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Good. We will step up the speed. Our new plans must be completed before Looker realises, and before Looker arrests everyone of us. He must not know until it's too late."

"Can't we send the Triad after Looker? That would end a lot of our troubles..."

"No. We stick to the plan, keep everything running as normal, keep nobody suspecting a thing."

"Certainly. And then we will rise again."

"Of course. I shall let the other Sages know immediately."

"Excellent! Long live the Plasma revolution!"

"Long may we reign." The phone clicked into silence...

**A/N: So someone's planning something new for Plasma! And Looker's finally met Ghetsis, a Sage and the Shadow Triad! :)**

**Next chapter- Looker goes recruiting, and some familiar faces pop up. Coming soon...**

**Please read and review! Thanks for reading, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	4. The Hired Help

**A/N: Here we are with Chapter 4 folks! :D**

**After that tense and dramatic battle last chapter where Zinzolin wiped the floor with Looker and co, Looker has realised he needs a new plan. And this chapter shows exactly what he's going to do, as we meet not one but FOUR familiar faces! :)**

**On with the show...**

The first golden rays of a beautiful sunrise filtered through the skyscrapers to the streets of Castelia City, illuminating them in an incandescent, orangey-yellow glow. The water of the bay and harbour twinkled and sparkled in the dawn, and a cool breeze brought the smell of saltwater into the city centre, picking up a few leaves that had fallen and twirling them around gracefully in their own little elegant dance. It was a beautiful start to the day.

Looker walked through the morning glow, one of only a handful of people awake at first light. His long brown coated billowed out behind him as he walked, and his black fringe twitched in the wind. He held a coffee cup in one hand, and wheeled a shiny black suitcase, his special crime fighting box of magic, with the other.

Any person who'd been through what Looker had been through the day before would have lost sleep over it- after all, he failed to stop Sage Zinzolin, got thoroughly defeated by Zinzolin's Drapion and been introduced to three ninjas who could hide in shadows, who were probably watching everything he did, and who could easily kill him in his sleep. Any other person would have been depressed, angry, scared and sad, and would have worried themselves so much they wouldn't have slept. But not Looker.

Rather than be consumed by regret, worry, fear and anger, Looker completely ignored everything negative about what had happened with Zinzolin. Instead of that, Looker focused on the positives, what needed to improve, and how he could improve it, drawing up a solution. Looker had a plan.

He reached the Police HQ, a few of the office lights on on the higher floors, and strode through the automatic doors, walking straight to the old desk sergeant Forsyth.

"Oh hello Looker!" Forsyth wheezed, his lips parting to expose crooked teeth in an ancient smile. "I heard about yesterday from Aurelius. Seems you bumped into Sage Zinzolin."

"Seems I did," Looker said, nodding. "Do you know which floor the others have an office on?"

"Floor 6. Go right on up my friend."

The lift doors pinged on cue, and Looker stepped in, nodding goodbye to Forsyth as the doors closed. After 30 seconds and some light jazz music, he arrived, stepping out into a modern black and white office with several computers.

Around a desk in the middle sat the team. Tash looked to be the only cheerful one in the bunch, while the others looked quite distant, and down; yesterday's events had obviously got to them, and some of them looked like they were struggling to believe they could actually do anything against Team Plasma. There were however some improvements- Croagunk sat in his own chair, revitalised and healed after the beating he took from Drapion. Reece's Porygon-Z was also present, as was a Metagross also sat next to Reece, and several Pokemon Looker didn't recognise.

"Morning all," Looker said, sliding into an empty chair at the head of the table to greetings. As he plonked his suitcase down, he opened a pocket to reveal a box of donuts, which he started passing around while Croagunk jumped up onto his shoulder.

"Feeling better now Croagunk?" Looker asked.

"Croa!" Croagunk nodded, looking happy.

"Ready to take on Team Plasma again?"

"Gunk..." A fire flared briefly in the eyes of Croagunk, and Looker knew his Pokemon was determined to get payback for the beating he'd taken from Zinzolin's Drapion.

"Good boy," Looker said, patting Croagunk on the head, before turning to the others, who were helping themselves to donuts. "Alright, someone tell me whose Pokemon are whose? I don't even recognise some of them."

Tash smiled, before taking him through the Pokemon. Looker recognised a Lucario from Sinnoh, which belonged to Bastian along with a small brown alien apparently called a Beheeyem, a Unovan native. Another Unovan native was a flying squirrel Looker was told was an Emolga, which Anna owned along with an Ambipom, a Ninetales and a Bellossom asleep on her lap. Tash herself owned a lofty Dodrio, a Gengar and a peculiar Psychic/Flying-type Sigilyph, while Matt's Pokemon consisted of a Porygon-2, a Mantine and a stag-like Sawsbuck.

"And who owns the Metagross?" Looker asked. He was very impressed with the rarity, strength and diversity of the Pokemon.

"Metagross and Z are Reece's," Anna said, as Reece nodded.

"Nice. Some very strong Pokemon you all have here," Looker commented.

"Yep," Matt said. "Reece used to battle the Unovan League a lot, so he's an experienced Trainer, and Anna came here after nearly beating the Elite 4 of Hoenn."

"Would've helped if we'd had our Pokemon yesterday though," Bastian rumbled darkly, and the room fell into a miserable, morose silence.

Looker didn't want that though. "So what about yesterday? I'd only been in Unova 6 hours! You can't expect instant results! And anyway, you were all unlucky- we had lost Pokemon to a Battle Tournament, and we underestimated Zinzolin, yet our two Pokemon gave his Drapion a run for its money."

"Yeah, but Sages have six Pokemon of that strength. We didn't have enough Pokemon firepower," Bastian said.

"Because our luck was against us," Looker insisted. "I don't care about yesterday's results, what I care about is the fact I now know what I'm up against, and I am so determined to get it right next time."

"Next time?" Tash asked.

"Yeah! We are going back after the Sages as soon as possible! Pull yourselves up people and get back up again. It's a new day, we know what to do, what to expect, and I have a plan to beat the Sages and their strength. Team Plasma will not win against us!"

Matt gave a sarcastic cheer, but Looker saw the smiles on people's faces- they believed they could do something again.

"Aurelius talked to us about it, y'know," Bastian said to Looker. "He said it wasn't good enough that we finally had a Sage where we wanted him and let him get away, and that we needed to improve."

"Ignore him," Looker said. "He wasn't there, and we did our best. And besides, we are improving."

Looker looked across the table to see Reece, taking him in for the first time, noticing the bags under Reece's eyes. "You look tired Reece."

"Shadow Triad scared me," Reece said wearily. "I spent all last night worrying those ninjas from the Shadow Triad were gonna kill me, and didn't sleep."

"Here, have my coffee," Looker said sympathetically, pushing his cup across. "This'll wake you up."

"Thanks," Reece said, taking a mouthful from the cup, before his face turned bright red. He swallowed, and started choking. "What the hell do you call this?"

"Coffee laced with a shot of Victreebel sap," Looker grinned. "Stronger than some brands of tequila. That should wake you up!"

Anna sipped it and made a twisted face. "How can you drink that? It's vile!"

"It keeps me awake and thinking intelligently on long days," said Looker. "I just ignore the taste. I guarantee it'll make Reece hyper and extra-productive today."

"Anyway," Tash said, ignoring Reece as he gagged on another sip, "you said you had a plan Looker, a plan to beat the Sages. What is it?"

"Simple," Looker smiled. "We hire the only people in the world who can beat them."

There was a pause. "Who do you mean?" Anna asked eventually.

"Anyone. We need to get someone to contact Champion Alder to see if he can assist us, along with the Elite 4 and even the Gym Leaders. Pull out all the stops." Looker delved into his case and pulled out the complete paper file to the Team Plasma, brushing donut crumbs off it as he went to a particular page and passed it to Matt. "And I want this lot."

Matt smiled. "Of course! The Nuvema Twins!"

Looker had read about the Nuvema Twins in the file the night before. Hilda and Hilbert Grey, non-identical twins from Nuvema Town. 6 months ago the 14 year olds had received their Starter Pokemon and gone off on a journey across Unova like many Trainers. Unlike many other Trainers however, Hilda and Hilbert had been supreme, unbeaten in Unova, and had been the key in defeating Team Plasma; while N was the hero of Zekrom, Hilbert was Reshiram's hero, and Hilda and Hilbert had defeated N, along with Ghetsis, to quell the Team Plasma threat. They were key to Looker's plans.

"I can't believe we didn't think of that!" Reece said, smiling; the Victreebel sap appeared to have perked him up already.

"Good idea huh?" Looker said. "We could hire Unova's two strongest Trainers, plus their strong friends Cheren Mavros and Bianca LeBlanc, and have 4 Trainers capable of beating the Sages. Plus, I have a track record working with 12 year old Trainers against evil Teams. The principle works."

"Let's do it," said Matt. "I'll stay here, sort through any intelligence, keep an eye out for the Sages..."

"So will I," said Reece, indicating his Porygon-Z. "Z's good at getting through security firewalls."

"Are you allowed to do that?" Looker asked.

"Who cares? We get the dirt, the necessary info, and that's what we're paid for."

"Alright," Looker said. "The rest of us will head to Nuvema Town to hire these youngsters. That's it team- let's roll!"

**(****)**

An hour later, Looker and co had come up with a foolproof plan, a way to get a definite meeting with the youngsters, a way that utilised one of Looker's greatest skills along with some of the stuff from his magic suitcase. They made a phone call to Hilbert and Hilda's mother, who understood immediately, and organised it so her children, along with their friends Cheren and Bianca, would be in the house for the Policemen to talk to. Now, as they waited in Nuvema, they could execute their plan...

Out in the town square two teenagers, one boy, one girl, sat and waited. The girl was petite and blonde, wearing a white form-fitting dress, orange tights, an orange petticoat and a green beret. The boy, lanky and thin, wore black skinny jeans, a ruffled blue jacket, a white shirt and a red tie, while black glasses and a grouchy face were framed by tufty black hair. They were the famous Cheren and Bianca.

Bianca huffed, pulling her Xtransceiver out of her green handbag. "Where are they? They're late!"

Cheren sighed patiently, rolling his eyes. "Actually we arrived here 20 minutes early," he said. "They'll be arriving any second now."

"We're really early? I thought they said half past?"

"No, they said on the hour."

"But I ran here because I thought we were 10 minutes late!"

"No Bianca, we were 20 minutes early, and you dragged me behind you across Unova at subsonic speeds to get here."

"...Really subsonic?"

"No, we actually travelled twice the speed of sound," Cheren said sarcastically.

Bianca smiled sheepishly. "Sorry Cheren."

A smile nearly twitched on Cheren's face, but he fought it back. "Don't worry. Look, here they come."

Bianca squealed in delight, looking up at the scare where Cheren was pointing, and saw a Braviary, a navy-blue-torsoed large eagle, swooping down. The Flying type Valiant Pokemon landed between her and Cheren, and two people jumped off its back- one was a brown-eyed boy with messy brown hair, wearing a blue jacket, black trousers and a Pokeball hat, while the other was a blue-eyed girl, her brown hair even messier and longer than his, wearing blue denim shorts, a white vest with a black jacket and a white hat.

"Thanks Brav," said the boy, returning the Braviary to his Pokeball. He was Hilbert Grey, 14, Unova's strongest Trainer. He was the Hero of Truth, partner of the Legendary dragon Reshiram, and his companion was his sister Hilda, almost as strong as him.

"Hey guys!" Hilda said as she spotted Cheren and Bianca, waving to them. She ran up to Bianca and hugged her, glad to see her friend, while Hilbert and Cheren played it cool with a nod.

"Oh my God where have you been?" Bianca asked. "We heard all about you at the Pokemon League!"

"We've been keeping low, trying to avoid the press," Hilbert smiled. "They want to talk to the Hero of Reshiram, Saviour of Unova, Vanquisher of Team Plasma, and I don't want any of that."

"Anyway," said Hilda, "I'd love to stop and chat with you, but Mom wants to see us. Something important apparently."

"That's why we're here," Cheren said. "Your mum told us to go and get you when you arrived and bring you home. She wants to talk to all of us."

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Bianca said, before practically disappearing as she zoomed off at high speed.

"Same old Bianca," Cheren said wearily. "Come on. She'll forget why she's there in a minute and wander off."

The trio, laughing, caught up with Bianca on the doorstep of Hilbert and Hilda's house, and all went inside at the same time. They couldn't see their mum in the living room/kitchen, so sat down and waited as the door shut behind them.

"Mom? We're home!" Hilda shouted, then, "Mom?"

A figure stood up in the kitchen, and the twins recognised their mom immediately, her brown hair instantly recognisable, but something wasn't quite right She turned around, the twins noticing she was wearing an apron, and started walking silently to them.

"Mom?" Hilbert asked, worried.

The figure before them discarded the apron, pulling off the grey jumper (and the padding that had make fake breasts) to reveal a crisp white shirt. Then, fingers reached up to the hair, pulling off a wig to reveal smartly combed-over black hair, and a latex layer that made a fake female face was pulled off to reveal the male beneath it, as a Croagunk jumped from the wig to land on his shoulder...

"Good morning," said a smiling Looker as he discarded the last of the disguise he'd made from the stuff in his magic suitcase. He was aware of the shocked looks, and the fingers inching towards Pokeballs. "I'm Detective Looker of the International Police. I assure you there's no need to bring Reshiram into this Mister Grey."

Hilbert stopped reaching for a Master Ball. "How do you know I have Reshiram? And how do you know my name?"

"I know all your names," Looker said. "Cheren Mavros, Bianca LeBlanc, Hilda Grey and Hilbert Grey. The four Trainers who put an end to Team Plasma, including the 'Hero of Truth'. N Harmonia has Zekrom, so the man who defeated him, Hilbert here, obviously has Reshiram."

"Alright, someone's done his research," Cheren said sarcastically. "But where's their mom? And why are you here?"

"Your mom is upstairs, out of the way, probably laughing as she watches your reactions on film. And I'm here because I need your help with a certain case, regarding Team Plasma."

"Do you want us to answer some questions?" Bianca asked.

"Nope. I want your strength as Trainers, because the Police needs you. You're the only people we know strong enough to take down some criminals we're after."

Hilda suddenly went pale. "Please, no. Not N, please..."

Looker was puzzled. "No, we haven't found N. He's somewhere abroad. Why do you say that?"

Hilbert looked embarrassed. "Well, you see... Hilda is kind of going out with him."

"Really? The King of Team Plasma? The man whose Team nearly took over Unova, the Hero of Ideals, the man who nearly brought about human/Pokemon separation... your BOYFRIEND?"

"Yeah," said Hilda, looking sad. "I haven't seen him in ages though. I miss him."

"And you're OK with this?" Looker asked Hilbert. "The Hero of Ideals, your enemy, leader of the Team you defeated, going out with your sister?"

"He never led it," Cheren said. "N was just another pawn of Ghetsis, just like the Sages. And I wouldn't say N's an enemy, more a friendly rival."

"Please don't make us go after N," Bianca pleaded. "He's innocent and harmless, and it'll really hurt Hilda. Please?"

"Whoever said I was searching for N?" Looker said. "I don't consider N a criminal, and I'd love to meet him, so I can use him to bring Ghetsis down. I need your help with the Sages."

"Ah," Hilbert said, understanding. "They're even stronger than N."

"Tell me about it. One Sage's Drapion beat up my entire squad. And that's why I need your help- you have a record of beating Team Plasma up. With your help we can find, capture and arrest the Sages, and then we can try them all in court on treason charges. But without you, we can't capture the Sages, we can't try Ghetsis alone, and we're screwed."

"You want our help with the Sages?" Hilda asked. "Sure, no problem! The sooner I get revenge for them manipulating N the better."

"I haven't beaten up a Plasma Grunt in ages," Cheren said, cracking his knuckles. "This should be fun."

Hilbert grinned. "We're all in Mister Looker! Ready whenever you are!"

"And whenever he pays us," Bianca added cheekily.

Looker smiled. "I'll pay you for every Sage you help us capture. Deal?"

"Only if you promise we aren't going after N," Hilda insisted.

"I promise. Besides, the squad doing that are searching for him in Sinnoh, and I'm obviously not part of that."

"Ha, they're idiots!" Hilbert said. "N's in Hoenn, having a Wailord of a time!"

Looker grinned, while secretly making a mental note of it- it was worrying that the Police were searching the entirely wrong region. Surely they knew where he was roughly?

As they all stepped outside, they were greeted by the team. Looker introduced Tash, Bastian and Anna to Hilda, Hilbert, Cheren and Bianca, and the Nuvema Trainers were properly introduced to Croagunk for the first time. The Sinnoh Pokemon smoking a cigarette (despite Looker's attempts to get it off him) fascinated them.

Anna's Xtransceiver started ringing during the introductions, and she took the call, before almost immediately handing it over to Looker. "It's Matt for you Looker."

"Hi Matt," said Looker cheerfully. "I'm happy to say that the Nuvema Trainers have joined us in our mission against the Sages, and are battle ready!"

"Well, you couldn't have timed it better," said Matt. "After doing a bit of digging, monitoring the news reports across Unova and checking security footage as well, Reece and I think we've found Sage Ryoku."

Looker's blood ran cold, and his heart briefly paused. He suddenly became much more alert. "What?"

"You heard me. News channels are reporting the appearance of a number of Team Plasma Grunts around the Relic Castle in the desert of Route 4, and on closer investigation of CCTV footage we've spotted an Asian old man arrive by Flying in on a Tropius. He entered the Castle, and the Grunts are now guarding the entrance to it."

"Great work spotting it," Looker said, thanking Matt. "You stay at HQ, keep your finger on the pulse, keep your eye out for any change in the situation. Send Reece to rendezvous with the rest of us outside the Castle, and I'll discuss the plan then. Let's go get our first Sage!"

As Matt hung up, Looker turned to his team. "How soon can we get to the Relic Castle, wherever that is?"

"That's Route 4, between Castelia and Nimbasa," Tash said instantly. "Driving with sirens on I can get there in 20, 25 minutes. Why?"

"Not quick enough," Looker said. "We need to get there ASAP if we're going to capture and arrest Sage Ryoku successfully."

"Ryoku?!" Bastian said. "Holy crap, really?"

"Really," said Looker. "We need to be quick."

"I could Fly you there in 5 minutes," Hilbert said. "Brav!"

Hilbert's Braviary appeared out of his Pokeball, as Cheren climbed onto his Unfezant with Hilda, and Hilbert hauled Looker up onto Brav.

"Right then," Looker said, impressed with Hilbert's quick thinking. "We'll go on as the advance party, while the rest of you take Tash's car and get there as soon as possible."

"Looker!" Bastian called, before passing Looker's suitcase of magic up to him, Croagunk hopping up too to land on Brav's head. "Take this! You may need it in a hurry when you get there!"

Looker mock-saluted. "Thank you Bastian! Let's go Hilbert!"

Brav squawked loudly under the weight of two people, a Pokemon and a suitcase, but he lifted off with a flap of his powerful wings, closely followed by Cheren's Unfezant.

As the people below dwindled in size as Brav rose, Hilbert turned to Looker. "Where are we headed again?"

"The Relic Castle," Looker said, a determined look on his face. "Let's get that Sage."

Brav cried again, before speeding off towards the horizon, and towards the new mission for Looker and co. This was their chance for redemption, to erase the bitter memories of their failure with Zinzolin and replace them with memories of success.

And Looker for one was not going to let another Sage get away...

**A/N: Well, hooray for Hilda, Hilbert, Cheren and Bianca! :) And hooray for a hint of Ferriswheelshipping. I do love it...**

**Some of you may recognise Brav from Pokemon Adventures as one of Black's Pokemon (yes, I hate manga, but I actually read some). In this Hilbert and Hilda will have the Pokemon of their manga counterparts, while Cheren and Bianca will have their game parties for someone who originally chose a Tepig (as Hilbert's partner is an Emboar).**

**Next chapter- a dramatic battle against Sage Ryoku, the dusty ruins of the Relic Castle, another new disguise from Looker, a 'legendary' cameo and the return of the Shadow Triad. It's gonna be awesome!**

**Please read and review! Thanks for reading, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	5. Flesh and Stone

**A/N: Howdy folks, here's Chapter 5 of The Chase! :D a little bit later than I'd hoped, but oh well...**

**This chapter shall see the second attempt of Looker and co to apprehend a Sage, all set amongst the dramatic backdrop of the Relic Castle. COMPETITION TIME- the title of this chapter, 'Flesh and Stone', is a clue to something in this chapter made of both 'Flesh and Stone'. First person to guess it wins an OC cameo, or gets to choose a real character to cameo in here! :)**

**Thanks so far to everyone who has reviewed/favourited/is following this story. I hope you like this chapter too! On with the show...**

On the back of Brav, the powerful Braviary who belonged to the 'Hero of Ideals' Hilbert Grey, Looker shut his eyes as Unova whipped past below, trying not to look down at the landscape rapidly streaming past him. Cold air buffeted his face from the speed of the Valiant Pokemon, soaring upon high above the world, Flying at a tremendous speed, and this made Looker hold on to Hilbert in front of him even tighter, at the same time feeling Croagunk grip his head in the same manner.

In the peace and tranquility, save for the cold air, Looker thought out a battle plan. He'd never been to the Relic Castle or the desert, but he had Reece to back him up immediately, along with three of Unova's strongest Trainers. He also knew Ryoku's file almost off by heart, how the Asian looked, a basic battle style, his personality- Ryoku knew nothing about him. And of course, Looker had the element of surprise. Now all he had to do was make sure it went better than the last time he'd tried to apprehend a Sage...

"We're here!" Hilbert yelled, and Looker opened his eyes. He could see the sprawling metropolis of Castelia on one horizon, and the other bustling city of Nimbasa on the other, but all that was between them was miles of sand and rocky debris. Browny-orange dust covered the land, dotted occasionally with rock outcrops and a few large specks Looker presumed were groups of Pokemon.

Brav cawed loudly, and Looker looked directly below them to spot the ruins of an ancient building, built from the stone of the desert, blending in with the surroundings. Parapets and turrets were visible in places, but time had been cruel to the building, and the very pillars were crumbling. This was the Relic Castle. And this was where Looker had the chance to arrest his first Sage.

Brav landed about 100 metres away from the Castle, behind a sand dune, closely followed by Cheren's Unfezant carrying Hilda and Cheren. At first Looker didn't know why they hadn't landed closer, but as he dismounted Brav he noticed Reece, also hiding behind the sand dune.

"You got here quick," Looker commented.

Reece shushed him. "Be quieter!" he whispered, pointing to the Castle entrance, and Looker finally noticed the two guards leaning against the pillars, while one other sat in the open door of the cargo bay of a Sikorsky helicopter. The uniforms were dead giveaways- no other criminals wore those chain mail armour suits, with full helmets and gauntlets, emblazoned with the black and white shield holding a light blue 'P'. And, Looker thought, no other idiots would wear heavy armour in a hot desert. It could only be Team Plasma.

"Gunk?" Croagunk hissed, as if saying 'Yeah, so what there's guards?', but Looker had noticed the guns in their hands. The three guards held lightweight plastic versions of the Bushmaster ACR, a deadly assault rifle in the wrong hands. Looker noted that the plastic version was manufactured by Clan McCullen Inc, the weapons company ran by Sage Gorm. It truly was a small world.

"Looker?" Reece asked. Looker turned to see Reece hand something across to him, a M1911 Colt semi-automatic pistol. "From Matt. He says you need protection, and if all else fails shoot the bastards."

Looker grinned, slotting a clip into the Colt before pocketing it. "Thank you Reece."

"So what do we do now? Send one of us running naked across the desert, wait until the guards chase them and sneak inside?" Cheren asked sarcastically.

"You idiot," hissed Hilbert. "I'm sure Looker here has a plan to get us through. Isn't that right Looker?"

Looker's mind had been racing for the past few minutes, thinking about the potential arrest he could make. He had no plan, but as he assessed the scene something formed in his head. "Reece? What are those statues over there?"

Reece followed Looker's point to see 5 turquoise-blue statues, red-eyed apes in crouching positions, around the entrance to the castle. "Those? They're Darmanitan statues. Darmanitan is a Unova Pokemon that transforms when injured into a 'Zen Mode' statue like these. We don't know how to wake these ones from their sleep. It would take a lot of energy for sure, and even then I'm not sure about what they'd do-they're supposed to guard this place fiercely."

"A lot of energy..." Looker grinned. "I have something that will do just the job."

Hilda stared as Looker pulled several wrappers from his magic suitcase. "Is those RageCandyBars? I thought they were exclusive to Johto and Kanto?"

"A friend got them for me as a souvenir," Looker said. "I never ate them though. But look at the amount of calories in these things! They're supposed to give you tons of energy!"

"Enough to wake up a Darmanitan?" Cheren asked.

"Let's find out!" Looker jumped to his feet and hurled the bars at the statues. Then all hell broke lose.

The Plasma Grunts noticed Looker stand up, noticed the bars flying through the air, and tried to charge forward from their post. However, one was immediately hit by a Fire Punch to the head to be knocked out, and the other was lifted into the air by multiple Confusion attacks and thrown against a pillar.

As the guard slumped to the floor, Looker smiled. The wrappers had split as intended, releasing the energy from the Bars and waking the Darmanitan, who were now chasing after the helicopter pilot, who'd dropped his Bushmaster as he ran away from the marauding Pokemon. One of the Darmanitan stayed behind briefly to Fire Punch the controls to the Sikorsky, shutting the engine down and breaking the chopper, before following the others. "That worked perfectly! Right, lets go!"

Following Looker's lead, the gang slipped stealthily over the dunes and behind the group of Darmanitan, into the entrance to the castle. Pillars decorated in an ancient style stood everywhere, looming ominously from the shadows, towering everywhere, while the dust of centuries gathered on the floor and on the hieroglyphs on the wall. It was eerily quiet.

Reece sighed as a cool breeze from the shady interior wafted over him. "Ahh that's good!"

Hilda smiled. "Hell yeah! Right, lets go get Ryoku!"

"Wait!" Looker said firmly, as the group of youngsters tried to dash off. "Do it stealthily and quietly! Ryoku mustn't know we're here! Reece, any idea what to do? Where to go?"

Reece pulled out a tourist map to the Desert. "There are 6 floors in this Castle, 5 of which are empty, just a ruin. The sixth basement floor however has a shrine to the god of the desert, a particularly strong Volcarona, in the southern part. There are plenty of relics and valuable artefacts down there- Ryoku will be there."

"Right, lets go!" Hilda said, quieter than before, and the group dashed off quietly down several flights of steps. However, when they were nearing the fourth floor down, a Plasma Grunt was visible at the foot of the stairs.

"Shit, turn round!" Cheren whispered urgently, but trying to stop Reece stumbled heavily, tripping on the stairs. As Reece crashed down, the Grunt turned round, raising his Bushmaster, but he was hit by the falling Reece, tackled to the floor, cracking his head on the solid stone floor.

The rest of the group reached the bottom of the stairs to find Reece sprawled atop the unconscious Grunt. "Nice tackle Reece," Looker commented, trying not to grin at Reece's clumsiness.

Reece grinned sheepishly, his eyes yellow again. "Sorry guys, but hey, it worked!"

Cheren smiled, pulling him upright. "Just don't keep doing it."

"Right," Hilda said, regaining breath, "Ryoku..."

"Not yet," said Looker, pulling his case in front of him. "Croagunk and I are getting changed."

"Another disguise?" Cheren asked.

Looker nodded, opening the case, putting his jacket in it and pulling out what he intended to wear. "This one's a cracker."

Hilbert worked it out first. "No way..."

Looker struggled into it quickly. "Yes way."

"Okay, that's clever," said Hilda, as Looker zipped up, and Croagunk donned his own disguise. "Ryoku won't get that."

Looker nodded. "Now, you lot take care of this Grunt, and make sure there's nobody else on this floor. Then, come down after me. Comprendé?"

"Understood," said Hilda. "You sure you and Croagunk are okay alone?"

"We'll be fine. We do a brilliant job at blending in with the background. Let's go team!"

**(****)**

In the shrine room on the 6th basement floor of the Relic Castle, an almighty battle was taking place. On one side of the room stood an old man, Asian in the face, surrounded by 6 Pokemon, a Tropius, a Scizor, a Shiftry, a Shedinja, a Venusaur and a Leavanny. This was Ichiri Ryoku, Sage of Team Plasma. And he was here for a very special prize.

That prize was not an artefact or a relic- most of them, priceless objects over 2000 years old, had been thrown to the floor by Ryoku's Pokemon, who had ransacked the shrine carelessly. Ancient tapestries had been crumpled and ripped off the walls, while the remains of smashed vases lay around a smashable rock. The destruction wreaked upon the place by Ryoku's Pokemon was extreme, but he was not here for idols to a god. He was here for the god.

That god was Volcarona, the Sun Pokemon, the moth like Pokemon with fiery wings. The room Ryoku was in was a shrine dedicated to Volcarona, protector of the Castle, the Desert and all that was in it. When Ryoku had arrived and started destroying things, he'd lured the angered Bug/Fire type into a trap, and his Pokemon had hit it hard.

Ryoku's Shedinja let loose a rippling Shadow Ball that surged through the air and smashed into Volcarona, who hit one of the five decorative pillar columns on the far wall in a flurry of embers. Volcarona cried out in pain, and slumped to the floor, curling its magnificent wings around itself.

"Pah!" Ryoku spat, as his Pokemon leered at the fallen Volcarona. Ryoku's Japanese accent was barely noticeable; his English however was broken and slurred. "Ghetsis say you strong Pokemon, you good enough for him to use! You pathetic! Why he want you I not know!"

"Vol..." the Sun Pokemon yelped, pitifully. It had put up a strong fight to begin with, but six against one is never good odds.

"Ha! It no matter!" Ryoku said, pulling an Ultra Ball from his belt. "Ghetsis want you, so I get you. Even if Ghetsis want weak Pokemon like you, Team Plasma will win."

He threw the Ultra Ball...

What happened next would be ingrained in Ryoku's memory for the rest of his life. As the Ball span through the air, the middle pillar on the wall suddenly sprouted arms and legs, charging towards Volcarona. The towering column rippled as it moved and tackled Volcarona to the floor, while at the same time the smashable rock erupted from the pile of vase pieces, sprinting over, leaping into the air and smashing the Ultra Ball in with a Poison Jab..

"What?!" Ryoku shouted. "What going on?!"

Croagunk shed the last part of the crumbling rock disguise and adopted a fighting stance, glaring up at Ryoku. At the same time a Full Restore appeared in the pillar's hand and was given to Volcarona, who cried happily from the healing effects.

"You forgot, Sage Ryoku," came a voice from the pillar standing before him, "there are only 4 real stone pillars in this room."

Looker undid the zip and stepped out of his disguise as a stone pillar, letting it fall to the floor as he thrust his police ID into the stunned Ryoku's face. "Good morning Sage Ryoku. I'm Detective Looker of the International Police, and you're under arrest for treason as a leader of Team Plasma."

Ryoku looked bewildered and shocked. "No... You hear my plan..."

"I heard it," Looker said. "You wanted Volcarona to give to your leader Ghetsis, for him to have when Team Plasma was revived. But that won't happen. You can't escape Ryoku, you've lost."

Ryoku regained some composure. "Bah! Very good disguise mister! But you, one Croagunk and one Volcarona cannot beat me!"

"Bring it on," said Looker, balling his fists, hoping Reece and the others would turn up real soon. "I'll take you on."

Ryoku adopted a karate stance, and Looker remembered the Sage was a black belt Dan. Even if he was an old man, Ryoku could hit hard. "You no win Mister Looker!" Ryoku leapt at him with a flying kick which Looker batted away, before a hard karate chop hit Looker in the jaw, sending him reeling into one of the real pillars.

Ryoku stood over him. "I win, always! What did you think you could do?"

"Distract you?" Looker said, spitting out blood and grinning.

Ryoku turned to see Croagunk grab 4 of his Pokeballs and leap acrobatically into the ceiling, shutting them and returning all of Ryoku's Pokemon except his Leavanny and Shedinja. "No! Bastard!" He went to hit Looker again, harder...

"Sage Ryoku stop right there!" yelled a familiar voice, and Ryoku stiffened. Turning to the entrance of the throne room, he saw Reece and Cheren framed in the doorway, holding the Bushmasters they'd stolen from the guards, but they weren't alone. The five Darmanitan leaped out in front of them, snarling as they saw the intruder who'd attacked their god Volcarona.

Reece, his Porygon-Z and Metagross at his side, turned to Looker. "In the nick of time sir! Sorry we were late, we went to fetch the Darmanitan. Thought they might be useful."

Ryoku snarled. "They won't be! I win today!"

"Oh really? Because you'd better turn around."

Ryoku snapped round, spinning to see Hilbert and Hilda. Volcarona, Brav and Hilbert's Emboar Buoh were at Hilda's side, both blazing with fury, but the thing that probably scared Ryoku most was the Vast White being Hilbert was sat on, fire spitting off the burning turbine-like tail, white mane whipping and twirling elegantly...

"Reshiram..." Looker sighed, in awe at the sight of the Legendary Pokemon of Truth. He'd seen legends before, but there was something amazing about the sight of Hilbert atop the white Dragon, a Pokemon and a hero in perfect harmony. Plus, the fact a super effective Legendary had arrived to beat the Sage preparing to hit him was always a bonus. Looker didn't want a broken nose.

"Reshiram. Oh shit," Ryoku whispered, before a loud scream echoed through the shrine. He span to notice the five Darmanitan and Porygon-Z take down his Leavanny with five Fire Punches and an Ice Beam, and his last remaining Pokemon, Shedinja, was then hit by a Sucker Punch from the returning Croagunk, putting the Wonder Guard Bug out of action in one super effective hit. "No!"

"Well fancy that," said Cheren, as Ryoku sank to the floor in anguish. "We didn't even need Reshiram to beat him. Or our guns for that matter."

Hilda handed Looker his case before Looker strode over to Ryoku, who was being handcuffed by Reece. "Sage Ryoku, you have no idea how much pleasure I have in saying, you're under arrest. Anything you say at this point may be given in evidence against you. Understand?"

Ryoku looked up. Gone was the fearless karate king who'd beaten up an innocent Volcarona for his leader to have, replaced by a tearful, fearful old man whose entire plan had been wrecked, whose ambitions and dreams of reviving Plasma had been shattered. "Why? Why Team Plasma never succeed?"

Looker hauled him to his feet. "Because you're up against the International Police. And we never let the bad guys win." At this point Looker frowned, noticing something in Ryoku's clenched fist. "Ryoku?"

The Sage turned. "Hmm?"

Looker punched him in the face, hard, the surprise of the blow and the force sending Ryoku reeling as his nose was broken, making him drop what was in his hand. "That's for earlier."

Reece picked up what Ryoku had dropped, a small black device, before his face paled. "Oh shit. Looker!"

Looker dropped the unconscious Ryoku before dashing over. The black device was a smaller version of Looker's Xtransceiver, but the screen had one message sent from Ryoku on it-

"TRIAD, EVACUATE ME," read Hilda, paling. "Oh, not them again!"

"Quick, everyone hide!" Looker yelled. "Hide Ryoku, wait until they come here, then we'll take them by surprise. Then we may end up getting a Sage and the Triad too!"

Everyone nodded, scurrying into alcoves and niches in the walls. Hilbert, Hilda, Brav and Reshiram flew up into the ceiling along with Reece's psychically- levitating Metagross, while Volcarona retreated behind a tapestry and Looker hauled Ryoku's prone body behind a pillar.

The dusty floor was quickly empty save for Ryoku's pager, and then the air shimmered, as the black-clad ninjas of the Shadow Triad flickered while they teleported into the room in a triangle...

"Now!" Looker screamed, the ninjas' heads darting up in surprise, drawing swords and shuriken, but they were too slow; the element of surprise worked.

One of the Triad members looked up as he felt the air ripple, only to be hit as Reece's Metagross cut its levitation and fell to earth from the rafters. One of Metagross' huge, spiked metal feet caught a glancing blow on the head of the ninja, the gravitational force of a 550kg Metagross immediately making him unconscious. The other two ninjas were hit by falling pillars- the Darmanitan had pushed one, while Buoh, Croagunk and Volcarona had pushed the other one. Either way, all three Troad members were hit hard, and went down harder.

"Yes!" Looker yelled, punching the air excitedly. "We got them!"

Reece ran over to the ninjas and cuffed each one of them, while Hilda and Croagunk pinched their weapons off of them, and Hilda then gave Looker a thumbs up. "Congratulations Looker! Your first Sage, and we got the Triad too!"

Reece was overcome with jubilation, his eyes orange and aglow with happiness. "It worked! We actually did it! I can't wait to tell the Commissioner this!"

"We all did great," said Hilbert, floating down on Reshiram's back and jumping off, stroking his Pokemon's mane. "Good work everyone, and the Pokemon too!"

Cheren prodded the ninja who'd been hit by Metagross. "I think we may have gone a bit far, possibly police brutality. This one looks like he's in a coma."

Looker smiled, relieved and happy at the capture of his first Sages. "I don't care, we did the job. And besides, its better if the Triad are deeply unconscious and won't wake up."

"Why?"

"It means the other Sages can't use them to evacuate- they have to fight us, and can't run. Plus, we don't have to worry about midnight assassins, or ninjas breaking the Sages out. We're winning now."

Reece helped Buoh load the unconscious and comatose Plasma members onto Reshiram's back. "Right, let's go people. Let's report this to the Commissioner, let's interview Ryoku, and let's go get another Sage afterwards!"

Everyone cheered, and Reshiram roared loudly, as everyone headed out of the wrecked shrine room. Looker however was packing his disguises back into his case, and so was last to leave with Croagunk. He span round, observing the damage, the smashed relics, the fallen pillars, then turned to one of the Darmanitan. "Thank you for your help. We couldn't have won this without you."

The Darmanitan gave him a mock salute, before Looker turned to Volcarona, who was looking healthier and much happier. "And I'm sorry what Ryoku did to you, that we couldn't get here quicker. And I'm sorry about the mess."

Volcarona gave a complex shrug of its impressive wings, before moving forward to envelope Looker in a fiery hug. "Rona!"

"You're welcome," Looker said. "Now stay safe, and I'll see you around. Come on Croagunk."

Looker turned and walked out of the shrine room with Croagunk and his case, leaving a rejuvenated and grateful Volcarona alone with the Darmanitan. Catching up to the others, Looker couldn't believe his luck, that today was the day they'd finally arrested their first Sage, along with the added bonus of the Triad.

And, Looker thought, as they walked out towards the Relic Castle exit, towards the warm light of day, towards HQ where they would report their success to the boss, this definitely would not be their last success...

**A/N: Hooray! Looker finally got a Sage! And he got the Triad too! :D hallelujah, about time!**

**Next chapter- What does the big boss reckon about this? Which game character will cameo? And is Looker being thrown straight back into the action? Find out soon...**

**Thanks for reading! (I'd love a review too) And until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	6. Mission Reports

**A/N: Well here we are with Chapter 6 folks! :D**

**I've had a few people telling me about how I got rid of the Shadow Triad too early. I'm sorry those people feel this way, but I have my reasons. If they remained, I fear that my story would just become one where every chapter goes 'Looker NEARLY captured the Sage, BUT the Triad saved the Sage in the nick of time!', which is boring. The Triad won't be breaking anyone out of prison or saving anyone anymore because it means I can focus on different plot aspects, plus its similar to the games (the Triad don't rescue the Sages at all in them). However, they will return, especially on the Marvellous Bridge like in the games, which will be a key plot part (you heard nothing ;) ).**

**This chapter will focus now on Looker reporting back to Aurelius on the success of his mission. It will also have a cameo from three characters chosen by The Mocking J, who won last chapter's competition after two guesses. I hope you enjoy it! :) on with the show...**

The Unova Police Commissioner, Thomas Aurelius, was sat reading, sprawling in the huge and comfortable padded office chair he had in his tenth floor office, specially built to accommodate his girth. Aurelius' desk was large, with many hidden drawers he used to store paperwork and other bits and pieces, and it looked out over the bustling harbour of Castelia City, taking in a grand view of the metropolis that was Unova's capital of commerce and business.

Aurelius liked his office; despite being ten floors above the hustle and bustle of the city below, he still felt a part of it. He often watched the people below scurry about their daily lives like Durant beneath his feet, and the complex movements of people, cars and boats of the harbour gave him just a little insight into the lives of everyone else. Yet Aurelius felt there was something missing in his life- excitement. Being Commissioner up in his office, he never got out on patrol, out into the thick of it like other officers, instead having a bureaucratic job of paperwork and meetings. It bored him.

Aurelius sighed, sliding the paper into one of the many drawers, and idly setting the balls of a Newton's Cradle on the desk into motion, before the corded phone on his desk, the phone used for the Police's internal, inter-department calls, started ringing.

Aurelius stopped the Cradle and picked up the phone. "Aurelius," he said bluntly.

"Sergeant Forsyth here sir," came the rasp of the aged desk sergeant.

Aurelius smiled. "Ah, Forsyth. What's the matter?"

"Well sir, you know how yesterday the Team failed to capture their Sage?"

"Yes?"

"Well today they've succeeded. Matt, Bastian, Tash and Reece have just brought Sage Ryoku in and put him in the cells."

"Really?" Aurelius asked, before sighing. It seemed the Team had finally succeeded...

"Yes sir. Apparently Looker's told them all what to do, and they're getting on with it."

Aurelius scowled. "Where IS Looker? I've been meaning to have a chat with him about the Zinzolin matter."

"Well, that's another thing sir. Looker's trying to make a video call with you direct from the Pokemon Centre."

"Wait what? Why's he in the Hospital?"

"He says he'll explain on the call, he just wants me to put him through to you."

Aurelius shook his head, bewildered. "Alright, put him through."

The computer screen Aurelius had on his desk flickered to life, to reveal Looker's face, battered and bruised with bloody lips, Croagunk perched on his shoulder. "Good afternoon sir! How are you?"

"Looker," Aurelius said, "what is the meaning of this? I've been meaning to have a meeting with you about your failure with Zinzolin, and now I'm told you've only gone and captured Ryoku!"

"Well sir," Looker said, "we decided this morning we needed to change things a little, and took the necessary steps." Looker picked up the camera and moved it, training it on Anna and the 4 other people off to his side. "You know Anna, but may I introduce Hilbert and Hilda Grey, plus their friends Cheren Mavros and Bianca LeBlanc, our newest team members."

As the teens waved, recognition dawned in Aurelius' eyes. "Wait, you enlisted the Nuvema Twins?"

"Yes sir. The Hero of Ideals, Master of Reshiram, and his friends, 3 of Unova's strongest Trainers, the Trainers who took down Team Plasma. They seemed an ideal choice for the job."

Aurelius smiled. "You know, there is technically a rule against us hiring under 16s."

"To hell with the rules. This job needs to be done, and we need operatives strong enough to handle the Sages. I don't care if I'm cheating, so long as I win against these Sages, before we can finally take Team Plasma down for good."

"A commendable attitude Detective Looker. Now, I don't suppose I could be filled in with the details to this mission?"

Looker nodded, recounting the exact details of what had happened that day; starting in the office, disguising himself as Hilbert and Hilda's mother, and hiring them. Then the alert from Matt about Ryoku, the dash to the Relic Castle, the guards and the Darmanitan. Looker smiled when he was retelling the story of Reece accidentally taking out the Grunt, and when he told Aurelius how well his pillar disguise worked. He only went up to the part where he knocked Ryoku out, not yet telling Aurelius what happened with the Triad.

"Very good Looker," Aurelius said, nodding, secretly wondering how Looker had managed to pull all of it off. "And you told the rest of the team to sort out Ryoku?"

"Yes sir. He should be waking up from unconsciousness in a nice warm cell." Looker's Xtransceiver buzzed, and he looked at the screen. "Matt's just messaged me sir."

"And?"

"Ryoku's come round and is locked in the cell sir. Also, his possessions have been confiscated- his six Pokemon in their Ultra Balls, his pager and a silenced Beretta pistol are now all in the evidence room under lock and key. He also had another, locked Pokeball on him, that they haven't been able to open, and its not registered to him."

Aurelius looked puzzled. "Hmm. That's peculiar certainly. I'll ask him about that when I go down to interview him."

"If you want to interview him sir. I'd personally suggest to leave it up to us."

"No, no. I insist I interview him. He might tell a lot more to the Commissioner of the Police."

"Yes sir. May I also ask sir that I have the recordings from the tape recorder in the interview room to listen to? I'll see if I can find anything within interviews with Ghetsis."

Aurelius frowned. "I'm afraid not Looker. That tape recorder is only a prop; there are no recordings. However I can give you the written notes from each interview." As Looker nodded, Aurelius went on. "So you're in hospital now because Ryoku karate-chopped you in the face?"

"No sir. I'm not that bad. I'm in hospital because these guys are." Looker smiled, turning the camera so Aurelius could see the unconscious and bloody Shadow Triad members wired up to heart monitors in hospital beds.

Aurelius, taking the wrong time to have a drink of coffee, spat it out across his office in shock. "That's the Triad?! What the hell did you do?"

"Well, Nurse Joy says one's in a coma sir, and won't wake up for a while. The others are unconscious." Looker told Aurelius how pillars and a Metagross had been dropped on them by surprise. "We needed to take them out of the picture sir. No more rescuing Sages."

Aurelius was shocked. "Looker, putting one in a coma by dropping a Metagross on him is police brutality!"

Croagunk gave an uncaring, Gallic shrug that the Frenchman Sage Zinzolin would have been proud of. It oozed indifference. "Croa?"

"He says who cares," Looker said. "Sir, the Triad are out of the equation, and that's all that matters. We'll have them brought over and put in special custody as soon as the Nurse is finished with them."

"Very good Looker. What are you going to do now? Drop pillars on another Sage?" Aurelius asked sarcastically.

Looker beamed. "No sir! I have a lunch reservation instead. I'll report to HQ as soon as I'm done!"

**(****)**

In the Pokemon Centre, Looker shut the call off before a bewildered Aurelius could reply and turned to the others. "Right, Hilbert, stay with me. Anna, take the others and my case back to base and join the others. See what you can get out of Ryoku." Anna nodded, and Looker turned to Hilbert as the others left the Centre. "Are you sure this is a good plan, especially so soon after beating a Sage?"

"Trust me," Hilbert said, grinning. "You and Croagunk will love it. Brav!"

Outside of the Pokemon Centre, Hilbert's magnificent Braviary stopped chasing Pidove and landed, allowing Looker, Croagunk and Hilbert to get on. The Valiant Pokemon then launched himself into the air, gaining height over the skyscrapers of Castelia as he headed for a new destination.

This was all Hilbert's idea. Looker may have taken down Team Galactic in Sinnoh, along with a few Gyms, but in Unova he hadn't proved himself capable of handling Unovan Pokemon/battling styles. So, Hilbert had called on a favour with some Gym Leaders, and had a reservation for Looker to battle at the first gym, in Striaton City, home to the Striaton Trio.

"So what are these Striaton Triplets like as battlers?" Looker shouted over the rushing air, as Castelia was soon left behind by Brav.

"They each specialise in a type, one Fire, one Water, one Grass, with an elemental monkey of that type as their key Pokemon. They also all have a Lillipup as their other Pokemon. They're not the strongest of Trainers, but they'll be a good test for you and Croagunk."

Looker nodded. "What else do they do?"

"Well, Cilan's a Pokemon Connoisseur..." Hilbert smiled at Looker's expression. "No, he doesn't eat them. He analyses whether Trainers are compatible with their Pokemon. All three of them are also gourmet chefs, so that's why we've got a lunch reservation too."

"Oh." At this point Brav had arrived, and swooped down to land in a green and pleasant-looking small city. There was a garden to the west where children were playing, but Brav landed outside a fancy-looking building with ornate pillars.

As they jumped off Brav and Hilbert returned him, a man dressed like a maître d' emerged from the doors to greet them. "Ah, Mr Grey! Welcome back to Striaton! I've heard all about your conquests of Team Plasma."

"It wasn't that much. Plenty of people helped me," Hilbert said modestly, shaking the man's hand. "I believe Mr Looker and I have a 'special' dinner reservation? Courtesy of the brothers?"

The man nodded, shaking Looker's hand. "But of course! The brothers have already prepared a modest meal at your table for you. Please, follow me!"

Looker and Croagunk followed Hilbert and the maître d' into a very posh, classy room with opulent decor. Passing many tables of people enjoying some delicious-looking food, Hilbert and Looker were directed to a table away from the others, next to a big wooden stage, where a veritable banquet of fine Italian food greeted them.

"Wow," Looker said, in awe, as he sat down. "This is a bit impressive."

"Only the finest cuisine is prepared here by the brothers Mr Looker," said the maître d', setting down knifes, forks and napkins. "May I interest anyone with a drink? Perhaps one would care to try this fine bottle of Martin Ray Cabernet Sauvignon, for instance?"

Croagunk's hand shot straight up.

Looker frowned. "No you don't. No wine before battling. Besides, I don't think Pokemon are allowed to drink wine."

The maître d' laughed. "We do allow it, but with this I wouldn't recommend it before a battle. I shall leave you to enjoy your meal."

The meal was superb- the Striaton Brothers had cooked up a variety of dishes from Italian cuisine, and it was obvious that they were accomplished chefs, from the quality. Hilbert went for a lasagne so thick it practically needed a shovel, Croagunk staked a claim on a 4 cheese pizza and Looker had a spicy penne arrabbiata, accompanied by the wine he'd denied Croagunk, pleasantly smoky with blackberry hints. Dessert followed for the two humans, panettone for Looker, tiramisu for Hilbert, and conversation flowed- Looker was interested in Hilbert's quest against Plasma, and Hilbert wanted to know all about Team Galactic.

Looker pushed his plate aside. "That was gorgeous. So when are we having this battle then?"

Hilbert smiled, and Looker turned to see three young men walk towards them. All three were in waiter's outfits, one with spiky, fiery red hair, one with a blue mop, and the last one with green hair elegantly combed back. So these were the Striaton Triplets, the Gym Leaders...

"Hilbert!" the red haired one exclaimed, rushing up to shake his hand. "Long time no see! Where've you been?"

"Busy," Hilbert said simply, smiling as the redhead pumped Looker's hand energetically. "Looker, meet Chili, Fire-type Leader of the Gym."

"Nice to meet you," said the blue haired triplet, calmly, more restrained than Chili with a delicate handshake. "I'm Cress, Water-type user."

"And I'm Cilan, of the Grass-type" said the final triplet with the green hair. "And you are..."

"Detective Looker, International Police," Looker said. "And this here's Croagunk, my only Pokemon."

"Hmm!" Cilan suddenly smiled, twirling on the spot. "The chemistry here! Two flavours, similar yet different, who would not leave a pleasant taste if alone, combine perfectly to make a near-perfect recipe! You should be proud- not many people have such a delectable taste!"

"Oh brother," Cress groaned, embarrassed.

Looker raised his eyebrows. "Thank you, Connoisseur, for your glowing evaluation." Then, as Cilan smiled, Looker smirked. "However, you missed out one detail."

"Huh?"

Looker jumped up onto the stage, Croagunk somersaulting up behind him and adopting a combat stance. "This is a winning recipe!"

The restaurant stopped, many people turning to see the commotion, and Chili grinned. "I like this guy. He has style. Okay Mr Looker, you're on!"

"Who do you want to battle?" Cress asked. "Normally we choose depending on a Trainer's starter Pokemon, but you can pick, seeing as you don't have a Unova Pokemon."

Looker paused, thinking. "Got it. Chili, I challenge you for the Trio Badge!"

There was cheering and applause, led by Hilbert, as Chili took to the stage. "Alright, let's see if your recipe leaves you with the sweet taste of victory, or the bitter taste of defeat!" Cilan yelled.

His brother Chili smiled. "Lillipup come on out!"

The little dog like Pokemon appeared in front of the battle ready Croagunk, and Hilbert appeared behind Looker. "I've just used my Pokedex to scan. Lillipup is level 12, whereas Croagunk is in his high 30s."

Buoyed up by Hilbert's positive scan, Looker began. "Croagunk, Focus Blast!"

"Dodge, Lillipup!" Chili yelled, and Looker was pleasantly surprised by the speed of the Gym Leader's Pokemon to dodge the powerful ball of energy; he obviously trained well. "Now, Bite!"

Lillipup rushed forward, and Looker smiled- that was too reckless. "Wait for it Croagunk..." Lillipup bit down on Croagunk's arm, making the Poison Frog wince and tell out. "Now! Revenge!"

Chili's eyes widened as Croagunk's eyes suddenly glowed orange, an orange energy enveloping him, before Croagunk's fist slammed into Lillipup, damaging it hard (Looker swore he heard ribs crack). Croagunk batted the poor Puppy Pokemon away, before launching another Focus Blast at its prone form. Lillipup was KOed in two moves.

"Wow, there's a real kick to that recipe!" Cilan the acting referee said, as Chili returned his fallen Lillipup. "Lillipup is unable to battle!"

Chili grinned. "There may be a kick, but can you handle it when we turn up the real heat? Pansear!"

The little red fire monkey that appeared reminded Looker a little bit of Sinnoh's Chimchar, although a Chimchar that had the same hair as Chili. "Croagunk! Time to play with Fire!"

"Hey, that's my line!" Chili yelled. "Take this! Pansear, Fury Swipes!"

"Croagunk, Poison Jab!" Looker yelled in retaliation, the two Pokemon dancing as they swiped at each other, both missing.

"Incinerate!"

"Quick, counter with Mud Bomb!"

Chili's eyes widened as the glob of sticky mud thrown by Croagunk fired its way through the flames and struck Pansear, splashing mud over the Gym Leader and the food left on Looker's table. "Ah! My hair! Pansear, Lick!"

The monkey dashed at Croagunk, and Looker started to give orders, but there was no need. Croagunk Poison Jabbed the tongue away, then as the monkey was reeling from the poison side-effect fired a Rock Slide at it, burying it under rubble. The dust in the restaurant cleared...

"Pansear is unable to battle!" Cilan shouted, as the knocked out form of Chili's prize Pokemon was revealed. "The victory and the Trio Badge go to the challenger Looker!"

Looker smiled as the restaurant started cheering, and walked over to shake hands with a crestfallen Chili. "Great battle Chili, thank you."

Chili looked up, and Looker could see a fire blazing in his eyes. "You won't win so easy next time Mr Looker! But you deserve this!"

Looker smiled as he was handed a beautiful, glittering object, 3 different coloured gems making up the Trio Badge. "Thank you. Oh, and by the way..."

"Yeah?" The brothers chorused.

Looker smiled. "We need to meet up for another meal sometime. That was stunning!"

The Gym Leaders laughed. "We'll call you!" Cilan said. "We'll arrange that for sure. Then we can meet the rest of your Police team fighting against Team Plasma!"

Looker and Hilbert waved as they walked out of the door, Croagunk hopping up onto Looker's shoulder once again.

"You two did great!" Hilbert said. "I don't think we'll need to do any more Gym Battles to test your strength, because you two are seriously strong!"

Croagunk flexed his arm muscles, grinning, and tried to pull a heroic pose on Looker's shoulder, but fell off.

Looker laughed, picking him back up. "Nice work Croagunk. Shall we go to the Pokemon Centre, get you patched up?"

Croagunk tried to answer, but was interrupted by Looker's Xtransceiver ringing, the 'Hawaii 5-O' theme. "It's Looker. What is it?" Looker said, answering it.

"Looker its Reece," came a frantic voice from the end of the phone, on speaker so Hilbert could hear it too. "We need you back at HQ instantly! Its urgent!"

Looker was suddenly wary. "What's happened?"

"Its Ryoku sir! Team Plasma have sent a rescue party to retrieve him! Get here soon sir, we don't want to lose Ryoku!"

Looker snapped the Xtransceiver shut to see that Hilbert already had Brav out, along with Reshiram, who he was on the back of. "Looker! Get on Brav! We need to hurry!"

Looker slung himself up onto the Valiant Pokemon's back quickly, holding onto Croagunk as Brav launched himself into the air, lurching skywards, rapidly gaining height. So Team Plasma had decided to send a rescue party...

"Not on my watch!" Looker yelled to the open sky, as Brav charged forward in the wake of the blazing turbine of Reshiram, ready to intercept Team Plasma and stop them in their tracks...

**(****)**

Elsewhere in Unova, a phone rang...

"Yes?" came a clipped precise voice.

"I take it you know how Ryoku was captured earlier today?" asked a near-identical voice.

"Along with the Shadow Triad, yes."

"Yes. Detective Looker was very lucky to capture Ichiri."

"No, Ryoku was too lax. He shouldn't have let himself be seen and caught so easily."

"Francois Zinzolin was worse. At least Ichiri didn't walk out into the city, metres from Police HQ."

"Anyway," came a testy answer, "why do you call?"

"We've sent a rescue party to liberate Ichiri, and get him back on his mission."

There was a pause. "You fool."

"What?"

"Looker is a cunning, clever man with an eye for detail. The fact that you're not rescuing Ghetsis will ring major alarm bells, as will leaving the Triad behind. You're going to make him suspicious, and he'll find out!"

There was a long pause. "Oh shit. I'll alert the Team immediately, to change plan."

"Good. Make it look as if you're rescuing Ghetsis too. Then Looker won't get suspicious."

"Understood. Long live Team Plasma."

"Long may we reign." The phone clicked off...

**A/N: So Plasma have decided to rescue Ryoku, but someone's not very happy about their plan. Any guesses as to who the callers are are welcome, but I swear nobody will get this :)**

**Next chapter- Ryoku's get-out-of-jail attempt, a Chase, high speed pursuits across land and sea, and... the Blues Brothers?! Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading, reviews are always appreciated! And until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	7. Hot Pursuit

**A/N: I'm back! I'm not dead, or lost, or mentally delusional, I was just on an educational hiatus! Here then is Chapter 7 of The Chase! Thank you for waiting! :D**

**Lynx, I will disagree with you again on the strengths of heroes/villains. Looker has already beaten Galactic, and Hilbert and co have already reached the stage where they've 'beaten the game', as it were. Plus, Plasma Grunts are pathetic in the games, and the Sages have very little input/use at all; the fact I'm making them such a big enemy is an improvement at least. As for the Shadow Triad, well, that's confidential for the plot...**

**This chapter will feature, quite simply, a mahoosive, epic pursuit between Plasma and Looker. I hope you enjoy! :D on with the show...**

Brav soared on high, whirling and wheeling on gusting winds that buffeted his feathers like nothing else. The dark clouds were gathering over Unova, and already large droplets of rain were hammering down on the region, falling with a force like the wrath of the Legendaries descending to Earth, swirling in the wind, splashing down on everything. But Brav soldiered on, through the torrents and the lashing rain. Because he had a mission to complete...

On the back of the battling Braviary, a bedraggled, sodden yet determined Looker clung on for dear life. The wind was whipping his fringe into the air while the rain was drenching it, so he kept getting slapped in the face by a flying, soaked combover, but he surged on regardless. He'd never seen any weather like this before, never seen rain so torrential and sudden. This wasn't rain, it was a vertical flood, a waterfall, and he was trapped in it.

As he sped through the air, large droplets of wafer splashed into his eyes, and wind hammered against his face, but even in the poor visibility he could see the glowing red flames, the bright fire of the burning tail turbine of Reshiram. Hilbert's Dragon of Truth was leading the way through the storm, white mane whipping and whirling but seemingly unfazed by the horrible conditions. As they surged forwards towards Castelia City, in a frantic race to stop Team Plasma breaking Sage Ryoku out of prison, Looker found himself praying that the storm would abate, that the rain would stop, that he would see blue sky once more. A lightning bolt fizzled past from on high, and among the black clouds high above, as he strained to see, Looker swore he could see a large black creature whirling amidst the chaos...

Then the vision disappeared. As did the storm.

"What the..." Looker breathed, shocked, shaking himself like a Lillipup to get rid of some of the water as he turned around to get a better view...

The storm was there alright, a seething, impenetrable black mass, a bank of violent black clouds from which water fell with the force of atom bombs. It enveloped Striaton City and Nacrene City, along with the rest of the southeastern peninsula of Unova, but where the trees of the Pinwheel Forest ended, so did the clouds. The rest of Unova was cloudless, sunny-skied; the Skyarrow Bridge acted like a barrier between a world of storm and a world of clear sky. It was eerie.

Croagunk poked his head out of Looker's jacket, having been hiding from the conditions, and looked around at the sunny skies. "Croa.." he said, glancing back at the cloud bank, before he started whistling the song 'Mr Blue Sky', sat on Looker's shoulder.

Looker shook his head at his Pokemon, before he felt a vibration in the pocket of his sodden trousers as the Hawaii 5-0 ringtone of his phone sounded through the now-still air, and he scrambled to get his phone out. "Its Looker..."

"Looker," came the voice of Reece Davis, "where are you? We need your help against Team Plasma!"

"I got caught in a storm on the way here," Looker replied, wringing his sleeves out. "Reece, brief me. What's the situation, where are you, and what are the Grunts doing?"

"They flew in on a helicopter, that they've parked on the helipad on top of the HQ, and descended down the building. 1 of them has remained in the chopper, 2 of them have us pinned down in our office," at this point Looker heard the crackle of the Grunts' Bushmaster assault rifles in the background to Reece, "and 3 more have headed to the cells. I've had a call from Anna, who is still in the Pokemon Centre, and nobody has tried to rescue the Triad. She's remaining to guard them."

Looker frowned. "Strange. You'd think Plasma would want to rescue their secret weapon, ultra-powerful ninjas, so they could use them to rescue more Sages. Why would they leave them behind?"

"That doesn't matter sir. What matters is that 3 Grunts are trying to liberate Ryoku and Ghetsis, and we can't allow that to happen."

"No we can't. Where's the Commissioner?"

Reece paused. "He's in Ghetsis' cell, interviewing him about Ryoku. No one else is in there with him. Apparently it was a special Commissioner interview; one of those ones we aren't allowed in."

Looker nodded. "Well, I guess if Aurelius thinks he can do something, then fair enough. Right, stopping the rescue of Ghetsis and the kidnap of the Commissioner is our priority, and I have a vague plan to do it. I'll be there in a minute."

Looker snapped the Xtransceiver shut, looking below himself at the bustling harbour of Castelia City as Brav soared closer to the skyscrapers and as Hilbert and Reshiram slowed down to draw level with him. "What's the plan boss?" the youth yelled, Reshiram howling to the wind.

Looker smiled as he looked at the streets; the sudden appearance of the Legendary in the skies had people in the streets gazing skywards in awe. "Follow me, and do as I say! Brav, to the HQ roof!"

Brav screeched loudly, defiantly yelling out to the sky, before swooping from the highest part of an updraft, flying like a bullet towards the roof of the HQ, Reshiram in tow. Ten storeys below a crowd had gathered to watch the Valiant Pokemon and the Dragon of Truth soar through the skies, Reshiram's tail blazing bright as they sped along.

Brav's swoop had taken him at just the right level to reach the helipad, and Looker could see a Team Plasma chopper, another Sikorsky, sat idling on the 'H', the Grunt at the helm with wide, shocked eyes as the Pokemon bore down on him.

"Now Hilbert!" Looker yelled, as Brav reached the platform. "Fusion Flare!" He and Croagunk leapt...

Normally Looker wouldn't have dreamed of leaping off the back of a speeding Braviary ten floors above the ground. It definitely wasn't Police protocol. But he had timed it perfectly; avoiding the bullets from the suddenly spitting Bushmaster of the guard, he and Croagunk hit the deck rolling to absorb the impact, while Brav wheeled upwards away from the bullets with ease. Then came Reshiram...

Red, yellow and white flames formed in a sphere of fire in the mouth of the Legendary, as red and yellow arcs of flame from the tail turbine joined it, before the ball was thrown at the helicopter. The poor Grunt inside had no time to react to the attack, and was caught in the violent explosion of flame, an explosion that wrecked the Sikorsky, turning it into a funeral pyre.

Reshiram landed with a thump, and Hilbert recalled his two Pokemon, before looking at the remains of the helicopter. "Jesus... I did that?"

Looker shrugged. "It doesn't matter about the Grunt. If he wanted to survive he'd have jumped out, and not started shooting at us. Besides, we've taken their helicopter out now- that should set them back." He turned, Croagunk back on his shoulder, and headed towards the staircase down from the helipad, rolling up his sleeves, a grim and determined expression on his face; he meant business against Plasma. "Come on."

Looker strode in through the staircase door, which had already been beaten open by the marauding Plasma invaders, and headed down the stairs at a brisk walk, Hilbert in tow, fiddling anxiously with his Pokeballs. Down three flights of stairs they went, down past Aurelius' empty office, to the level where the team had their office, and there Looker stopped. He'd heard the faint crack of the Plasma Bushmasters from the top floors, and on this floor it had become a loud roar. He peered around the corner...

Two Plasma Grunts had their backs to him, staring out into the office room, guns levelled. From his position Looker could see the shadows of his team, the sunlight from outside shining brightly and throwing their long shadows across the floor, pointing out where they were hiding behind an overturned table. The thick arm of Bastian suddenly popped up around the table, a Police Glock pistol in hand, squeezing off two shots that fell well wide of the Grunts, before retreating back into cover as a hail of gunfire surged their way from the cracking Bushmasters.

Looker turned to Hilbert. "Wait here," he whispered in a very hushed tone, putting a finger to his lips, before he stepped across the doorway, behind the Grunts' backs. Carefully, he removed a fire extinguisher from its mounting on the wall, wincing as it squeaked a little bit, but the Grunts didn't hear. Hefting the heavy metal cylinder, Looker glanced up at Croagunk, who merely nodded, and then...

He sprang! The Grunts had not kept their guard up, leaving themselves open to an attack from behind, and Looker seized the opportunity. Croagunk jumped off his shoulder, Poison Jab prepared, and socked the right-hand Grunt in the back of the head, the Poison seeping into the bleeding wound, making the guard sink to the floor in pain before Croagunk delivered a Rock Smash to his head to knock him out. The other Grunt didn't fare so well; he was hit with the full force of a heavy fire extinguisher swung by Looker, and was out like a light before he hit the floor.

Looker winced in pain, dropping the fire extinguisher to one side; it felt like he'd torn a muscle in his side swinging it. "Well, that worked. Come on you lot, get up. Team Plasma isn't going to arrest itself, is it?"

Reece's head popped up from behind the table, cautious at first, wary of any further gunfire, but after he assessed the scene he smiled, his eyes going green. "Thanks Looker! That helped us out a bit!"

"Where the Hell were you?" Cheren asked, standing up and dusting himself off as the others got up too.

Hilbert stepped around the corner sheepishly. "We were having lunch and a Gym Battle, we just kind of got distracted. My idea, sorry guys."

"Don't worry!" Bianca said brightly. "You didn't know this would happen!"

"No we didn't," said Looker grimly, drawing the Colt pistol Reece had given him at the Relic Castle. "And I don't want it to happen. Let's go."

With Looker, Tash, Matt and Bastian leading the way, guns drawn, the reassembled team headed down the stairs towards the cell block, to where the Grunts would be if they were rescuing Ryoku. They passed the desk, where Sergeant Forsyth was absent, and headed towards where Ryoku was under lock and key, but Looker and Matt stopped outside the interview room.

"Looker?" Bastian hissed. "Ryoku's this way!"

Looker remained still, catching Anna's eye, and she nodded, coming back to stand with Looker and Matt. Normally an interview room was silenced to the outside, and had one way glass to allow outsiders to see in. This one had no glass, but Looker thought, if Aurelius wasn't in his office, and if he was questioning Ghetsis...

Matt slammed himself against the shut door, forcing it open with his entire body weight and yelling "Police!" at the top of his lungs. Looker jumped in quickly to be greeted by the sight of Forsyth sat beside Ghetsis at the questioning table, with Aurelius opposite. A lone Grunt was stood in the corner holding a Bushmaster, and his head whipped up as the door was busted in, but before the Grunt could raise his gun to fire Looker squeezed off a shot with the Colt, that hit the Grunt in the arm. The Grunt went down screaming, and tried to grasp for a Pokeball on his belt, but Bastian had barged his way in, and a fist like a wrecking ball slammed into the Grunt's face, breaking his nose.

In the struggle, Aurelius had quickly pulled a pistol, a custom-made Beretta, from his belt, and now had it to Ghetsis' head. "Don't move!" he snapped aggressively to the Plasma leader.

Ghetsis sighed, crossed his arms and sat back, feeling cheated of an escape. "So near, and yet so far..."

"Nice try Ghetsis," Hilda commented drily. "Try harder next time."

Aurelius nodded to Looker. "Good job you got here in time. That Grunt was about to move us out."

Looker ignored him. "Reece, Anna, Hilda, help Forsyth put Ghetsis back in the cells, then escort the Commissioner back to his office. The rest of you, with me. We still have to stop Ryoku getting out."

The officers snapped to it, but even quicker than them were the three figures who sprinted past the interview room, heading towards the exit...

"It's Ryoku!" snarled Matt, as he spotted a flash of the green tie. "He's escaping!"

"My time to shine," Tash said, drawing her own Glock, and Looker remembered Aurelius telling him she was Unova's top pursuit officer- she'd be very useful in getting Ryoku back under arrest. "Looker, Hilbert, follow me. And do try to keep up."

Hilbert grinned, and hastily followed her out of the room, starting to run when they got back into the corridor, and starting to sprint when they realised Ryoku had left the building and was in the city.

Looker skidded to a halt in the plaza. "Where are they?" He grabbed a nearby citizen angrily, who eeped. "Which way?"

The frightened city resident pointed south, and Looker pounded off in that direction, but Tash quickly took the lead; the pursuit officer had much greater physical strength and fitness than Looker. Reaching a crossroads, she didn't pause for a moment, as she caught a glimpse of the green tie billowing as Ryoku ran south, and followed down Mode Street, jostling the commuters. "Why are they running this way? Why not back to the helicopter?"

"Hilbert destroyed it!" Looker yelled. "They can't escape that way!" Then realisation dawned. "They're headed for the harbour!"

By now they'd reached the end of the road, and emerged onto the Oceanfront Road, the waterfront road that housed the many piers and wharfs. There were quite a few people milling around the pier, a mariachi band was playing 'Waiting for the Robert.E Lee', and the sudden arrival of the officers attracted a crowd away from the band, which wound the guitarist up.

"Where's he gone?!" Hilbert said, groaning due to lack of fitness. "God, as Unova's top Trainer I need to be fitter than this..."

"He's there!" Tash said. "Prime Pier!"

Prime Pier was one of the five piers that jutted out from the wharf. Looker had been shown it by the officers when they'd taken him for a city tour (on the day they tried to arrest Zinzolin), and it was home to the Police's two chase boats, rigid-hulled inflatable boats (or RIBs) along with a black Yamaha motorboat which nobody seemed to know anything about. Now Looker knew though; Ryoku jumped aboard the Yamaha, losing his brown hat to a sudden gust, before the boat started to head out of the harbour.

"Oh no you don't," said Tash, running over to one of the RIBs. Powering up the engine as Looker and Croagunk jumped aboard, she handed her walkie-talkie to Looker, and tossed another one to Hilbert. "Hilbert, turn this to channel 6, and get up in the air, on Brav or Reshiram. Monitor our situation, and get the others in pursuit now!" Before the stunned teen could reply, Tash gunned the RIB's engine and set off out onto the water, bouncing from wave crest to wave crest as the Police chased after Ryoku.

Looker, crouched at the bow of the RIB while he looked out at Ryoku's fleeing boat, heard screams from the wharf, and turned to see a gathering shocked at the sudden appearance of Unova's best Trainer and his Legendary Reshiram. The Dragon of Truth roared, before jetting skyward on a pillar of flame, its master clinging on for dear life. Looker's gaze then turned to Tash; while there was determination in her eyes, she was smiling, the thrill of the chase getting to her. She was in her element, in pursuit.

Looker's walkie-talkie squawked, and Hilbert's voice came crackling over the airwaves. "Looker its Hilbert! Keep us informed, what's the situation, over?"

"We are 200 yards behind the suspects, and closing!" Looker yelled over the engine. "Heading north-west out of Castelia, potentially towards Nimbasa or Driftveil!"

There was a brief pause. "Okay, Reece and Hilda are in a chase car leaving Castelia and heading north along the coast in support. Matt is also trying to get the Unovan Army to send in a helicopter, but for now your only aerial support is me."

"Well keep at it Hilbert," Looker said. "We need you."

"Umm, Looker?"

"Yes?"

"Huge cruise ship up ahead!"

"What?" Looker looked up. "Oh shit. Tash!"

Hilbert was right. The water channel up ahead was being taken up by a monstrous vessel, a gold and grey behemoth of iron that towered above most other ships. The cruise ship was grand and luxurious, and from a distance Looker could pick out the name on the bow- the 'Royal Unova'. But, more importantly, it was heading diagonally across the channel... on a collision course with the RIB and Ryoku's boat.

"Why is that out there?" Tash shouted. "I thought the Royal Unova was supposed to be in port during the day?! Its only supposed to leave on evening cruises!"

Hilbert's voice came over the walkie-talkie. "I've just radioed the Harbourmaster. Apparently, according to him its out on a test run testing a new propulsion system."

"Well get it to clear out of the way!"

"Too late.." Looker moaned, as the cruise ship loomed ominously up ahead. The bow wave alone from the thing was huge, and, sensing the danger, Ryoku's boat put on an extra spurt of speed to get clear easily, the horn of the Royal Unova blaring angrily at the Plasma boat's recklessness.

"I'm not stopping!" Tash shouted. "I'm not losing Ryoku!"

"Are you nuts?!" Looker yelled back, afraid of the impending crash. "You're gonna wreck us!"

Tash shook her head, opening the throttles to the max. "Hold on!"

Croagunk put his hands on his head in a brace position, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes, preparing for the worst...

There weren't even millimetres to spare. The rigid hull of the RIB scraped loudly against the sharp bow, and the boat rocked violently, tossed by the collision and by the bow wave, but it held firm. Looker and Croagunk hung on for dear life, fearing they would be crushing by the leviathan, but Tash battled resolutely at the helm, and through the surges of water and blast of horn noise, the RIB powered on, away from the Royal Unova.

Looker mopped sweat from his brow, and Croagunk followed suit, a mirror image of his master. "Thank God..."

"You alright Looker?" Tash asked, concerned.

"We made it," he replied. "You did it.. Well done Tash!" And with that, he leaned overboard and threw up all his lunch from the Striaton Gym.

"If it makes you feel any better," Hilbert said on the radio, over the sounds of retching, "I'm feeling seasick watching that. How did you do it?"

Looker lifted his head up and back onto the boat, trying to reply wittily, but he was cut short by the pock-pock of bullets hitting the RIB's hull, and he threw himself to the deck. "What the Hell?!"

Tash crouched down. "Helicopter, in the sky, bearing 90! There's a gunner!"

More bullets whistled past, and through the hail of gunfire Looker could see a military chopper, an Apache gunship, with Reshiram circling anxiously higher up in the air. The chopper's chain gun was blazing, and a flag hung from one of the landing skids, a black and white shield with a blue 'P'. "I thought you said the military were coming!"

"Umm, Looker?" Hilbert said. "That's supposed to be the military. They're not answering radio calls though, and the Nimbasa base crew say their pilots are not on that chopper."

"Plasma traitors," Looker snarled. "Hilbert, light the bastards up!"

"Yes sir! Reshiram, Blue Flare!"

The Unova sky, clear and light, suddenly blazed a brighter shade of blue, as a broad beam of blue and white fire shot from the mouth of the flying Reshiram into the Apache, which erupted in a blue explosion in mid air. The crew had no chance of survival, and the wreckage splashed down into the water and sank into the murky depths just a few metres from the RIB.

"Good shot," said Tash admiringly, as the water steamed. "We're catching them now!" She was interrupted by more gunfire though, this time from the back of the fleeing boat itself, as one of the Grunts at the back of the black Yamaha picked up a Bushmaster and tried to take Looker out. "These guys never quit, do they?"

Looker opened his mouth to say something, but Croagunk acted quicker; Looker's partner swiped Tash's Glock from her belt, before running back to the bow and opening fire on the Plasma boat with unnervingly good aim. One shot from 100 yards away actually hit the Grunt in the shoulder, and Looker grinned as she went down in pain.

"Good shooting Croagunk!"

"Gunk croa!" Croagunk smiled, pulling a Usain Bolt pose.

The walkie-talkie sounded out once again. "Looker this is Hilbert! Good news! The Navy have responded, and we have a Coast Guard cutter coming downstream towards you fast! And this lot are loyal! Switch to channel 8 to hear from them..."

Looker flicked over, to hear "Police patrol boat, this is Captain Beaumont, commander of the UNS Thunder Child. Please respond, over?"

"Thunder Child this is Detective Looker. Where the Hell are you?"

"1.5 miles upstream and closing on your position fast. You should see us on the horizon. What assistance do you require, over?"

Looker peeked up over the bow, wary of further shots, to see the UNS Thunder Child steaming towards them, her forward gun turret standing proud. She looked almost like a miniature destroyer, such was the design of the turrets- they were powerful. "Fire warning shots over the Plasma ship! I repeat, fire warning shots! Let them know what they're up against, but do not sink the ship. There's a Sage on board, and we need him alive!"

"Understood Detective." The forward turret suddenly twitched, black smoke and flame belching from the twin barrels as two shells whistled overhead, splashing down 20 metres ahead of the speeding Plasma boat, catching it with a plume of water.

The Plasma boat swerved, and Looker saw it change course across the water, speeding for the far bank. Squinting, he could see a Jeep Cherokee on the bank, the familiar Plasma insignia on the bonnet. "Dammit! They're taking the chase onto land! Hilbert, where the Hell is Reece?"

"Coming up on the far bank. You should see him arriving about 100 metres downstream from the Plasma Jeep. Do you want Reshiram to take the Jeep out?" This was followed by Captain Beaumont on UNS Thunder Child, asking Looker whether the Navy ship should fire on the Jeep.

"Too late," Looker groaned, as Ryoku's boat grounded itself alongside the Jeep. "We can't risk hitting Ryoku. Thank you for your assistance Thunder Child, but from here on its just us and them."

Tash had brought the RIB on a course to meet the far bank, and as it drew closer a Police Lincoln Towncar swerved onto the muddy banks, skidding to a halt near them as the Plasma crew got into the Jeep.

Reece jumped out as Looker and co landed, leaving the boat aground as they dashed for the Lincoln, the Jeep roaring off. "Tash, you drive! Give me the radio, I'll direct!"

Tash slid into the driver's seat, Looker sat beside her in the passenger seat and Reece and Croagunk in the back. The Lincoln's engine roared as it charged forward in pursuit, the sirens wailing and lights flashing despite there being no traffic on the bank. They soon rejoined the Route though, west into Driftveil City, where traffic was slow, and progress was hard, as the 4x4 Jeep simply went around the jam, stretching its lead.

Reece looked up from the radio after some busy talking. "Matt's got into the surveillance grid for Driftveil. Anywhere they go, we know. I've also got a new chopper hovering the city, and Thunder Child is guarding the harbour; nothing is leaving by sea. Not by road either- Driftveil's Chief of Police Alexis Reid has closed all roads out of the city. They'll be trapped in Driftveil."

Croagunk started jumping up and down excitedly, and then Looker saw it too. "That's not our problem. Look!"

The others saw it now. Route 5 linked Nimbasa City and Driftveil, via the Driftveil Drawbridge, a bridge that lifted up and down. The Plasma Jeep had managed to cross it well before the Lincoln, and was parked outside the gatehouse of the bridge. As a Grunt ran out, jumping back into the Jeep which moved away, a loud whirring could be heard, and slowly, the Drawbridge began to rise...

"Ha, nice try mister!" Tash said, flooring the Lincoln's accelerator through the traffic, finding every gap as she sped up approaching the bridge. "That ain't gonna stop me!"

Croagunk and Reece blanched. "Oh shit," said Reece, as Croagunk once again adopted his brace position.

"Here we go!" Looker yelled, hanging on for dear life as the Lincoln reached the bridge. The incline was getting higher all the while, but the Lincoln was at top speed, and roared up the ramp, launching itself over the gap...

Looker was reminded of the famous swing-bridge jump scene in the movie, 'The Blues Brothers'. The Lincoln sailed over the gap quite serenely, but came down with a heavy thump that tested the spines of the occupants to the limits. The tyres however didn't survive; they burst on impact, and the Lincoln skidded to a halt on sparking rims. They made it over, but now they had to walk into Driftveil and chase after Ryoku on foot.

Looker stepped out of the car giddily and looked down at the smoking remains of the tyres. "Well," he said weakly, "that was fun."

Croagunk was throwing up in the back seat, and when Looker finally got him out Reece trotted back over to the Lincoln from the gatehouse. "They blew the mechanism up sir. We aren't going to be able to use the Drawbridge."

"Neither are they," Looker said, striding forward, marching away from the Lincoln towards Driftveil at a brisk pace. He grabbed Reece's walkie-talkie. "Hilbert, you still there?"

"Affirmative. All exits out of Driftveil are sealed, and the Driftveil Chief is sending people to guard the Drawbridge now. We've got air and sea exits covered, the security cameras are under close scrutiny, and patrols/searches will start when you and the Chief say so. They can hide, but they can't run."

Looker nodded. "Get everyone back at base to come here by air. Take Cheren's Unfezant and any other Flying type or Flying machine you can find. We need you down here on the ground though."

"Got it. See you in Driftveil."

As the radio clicked silent, Looker's phone started ringing, an unknown number calling. Croagunk looked at it suspiciously, as did Looker, who answered with a tentative "Hello?"

"Ah, mon ami Looker! It 'as been too long, oui?"

Looker froze- how did he get this number? "Zinzolin?!"

Sage Zinzolin laughed. "Ah-ha, you sound so 'appy to speak to me. Tell me, 'ow is your search for ze Sage Ryoku?"

"You bastard. You orchestrated the move to get him out, didn't you?"

Zinzolin clapped. "I'm impressed by your powers of deduction, Detective! Yes, zat was me! Monsieur Ryoku is safe wiz me now, hidden from you until we can leave ze city. I would give up, mon ami. You will not find us."

"I will find you, and I will kill you," Looker said, not even smiling at the Liam Neeson reference. "Or I will at least bring you to justice. You disgust me." He hung up angrily.

"Are you alright boss?" Tash said, Croagunk also looking concerned.

"No!" Looker snarled, picking up his pace. He glared out at the sprawling city of Driftveil, where somewhere two Sages, wanted criminals, were laughing at him, hiding, plotting their freedom. "No more! Ready or not, here I come, Team Plasma!"

**A/N: Well, that was exhilarating! :D hope you enjoyed it! Please, leave a review if you did...**

**Next chapter- One city. Two Sages. One angry Looker. The search continues... soon...**

**Thanks for reading, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	8. Frost and Blood

**A/N: Here we are folks! Chapter 8 is now up! :D and here we shall see a character cameo, along with Looker's attempts at redemption, his attempt to get Sage Ryoku back under arrest and to get Zinzolin in the process too. Its longer than usual, but I hope you enjoy! On with the show...**

Somewhere in Unova, a phone rang...

"Yes?" answered a clipped, precise voice.

"The mission to bust out Sage Ryoku was a 100% success. He is safe with Sage Zinzolin now."

"I know. And neither Ghetsis, nor the Shadow Triad were rescued."

"As per the plan. Make it look like we were rescuing everyone but not try so hard with the others, and only escape with Ichiri."

"Yes, although I think we should have at least sent somebody to look like they were rescuing the Triad. Looker will be suspicious of why nobody went to rescue our ninjas, and why only one Grunt was sent to liberate Ghetsis." There was a pause. "You do know Ryoku's mission was accomplished yesterday, while you were breaking him out."

There was an even longer pause. "...What?"

"While the Police were chasing the escaping Sage Ryoku in boats and in cars, they weren't watching the rest of Unova. We managed to accomplish what Ryoku set out to achieve, the last stage in preparation for our grand master plan. The freedom of Ryoku is no longer needed."

"So our mission yesterday was a complete waste of time?"

"Essentially."

"We lost 4 Grunts yesterday, and 5 more were arrested, plus we lost two valuable helicopters! And now you tell me our mission was pointless!"

"Calm yourself. The mission was not totally pointless. Chasing after the others will keep Looker occupied, and keep his focus away from Ghetsis. Plus, he won't suspect anything about the master plan until its too late."

"..True. What do we do?"

"Contact Francois Zinzolin, and tell him the preparation is finished. Now begins our plan. I must stress, do not hand yourselves in, but at the same time, do not fight arrest too much. For our plan to succeed, Looker must have arrested every Sage."

"Understood. I'll contact him immediately. Long reign Team Plasma." The phone clicked off...

**(***)**

The storm of earlier had finally made it to Driftveil in the late evening, picking up in ferocity and strength as it passed over the water channel in between Castelia, Nimbasa and Driftveil. Hot air from the desert was mixing with cold waters to create a sort of miniature hurricane, gale-force winds throwing the rain at the city. The deluge crashed down on Driftveil so hard that every droplet became dancing spray, every droplet contending with the others for supremacy in the air, waiting to splash down.

Looker was still fuming. He was seriously angry with how he'd had Ryoku locked up in a cell, how everything seemed to be going right, before the Sage slipped out of his grasp and escaped, the other Sages mocking him for it. The last time he'd felt this low after letting his quarry escape was in Sinnoh, when he'd failed to stop Team Galactic Bombs blowing up first the Great Marsh, then Lake Valor. It was a horrible feeling to Looker, and his failure had got to him greatly; he was swinging between morose misery and furious rage.

Tash, Reece, Hilbert and Croagunk were sat beside him in the conference room of the Driftveil City Police Station, all looking glum, although not as much as their leader. Any other day and such brilliance in pursuit of a criminal would have earned them a medal and, more importantly, would have caught the criminal. But not now.

The door at the side opened, and as everyone in the room except Looker rose, the rest of the Team, the ones who'd stayed behind in Castelia, walked through. Everyone in the room except Looker and Croagunk rose- Lookee remained sat down, with his head in his hands, and Croagunk sat beside him.

"Looker what's the matter?" Bianca said, looking concerned, completely forgetting the whole point of her being there.

Croagunk made a surprisingly concise and quick gesture to suggest Looker was depressed because he had small genitalia, which everyone found hilarious.

Looker too, for all his misery, laughed a little at the cheeky gesture, but hit Croagunk behind the head to tell him off. "Funny Croagunk. We're here because we failed Bianca, remember? We let Ryoku slip out of our grasp..."

"And we're not going to let it happen again," said Matt, finishing Looker's sentence as he walked into the room after everyone else. He walked straight up to Tash and kissed her on the cheek. "Great work with the pursuit. It's a pity the tyres blew, or you'd have caught them."

Tash smiled, kissing him back. "Thank you."

"Wait, what?" Looker had completely missed this, and sat forward, interested. "You two are dating?"

"Well yeah!" Matt smiled. "I'm disappointed. The great Detective didn't spot this one."

"Even I worked it out quicker than you!" Reece cried triumphantly. "I got it on my first day at work."

"Reece, that's because you walked in on them in the toilets, remember?" Anna deadpanned, as the others laughed, Reece blushing as his eyes turned yellow in embarrassment.

"Well, if we're coming clean about relationships," Bianca said shyly, "me and Cheren are dating."

"What?!" Hilbert's yell was frightening, deafening. "Since when?"

"Since the day after Nimbasa, when my dad tried to make me go home."

"Wow," Looker said, shocked. "Opposites really do attract." Croagunk nodded, stunned.

"Aww guys, that's so cute!" Hilda said, rushing over to hug the pair. "Congratulations!"

"Well, I guess you guys should all know that Hilda is dating N Harmonia then," Cheren said slyly, grinning.

"Cheren!" Hilda said, but it was too late: focus shifted to her, and a barrage of questions about the Team Plasma King followed.

"Well, this is very cute, knowing all this," came a soft voice from the doorway, "but it doesn't help the case. I'm single, but it won't help us capture a Sage."

Everyone jumped to their feet, but Looker remained seated, grinning. "Well, it could, but offering yourself as sexual bait to a criminal old man isn't standard protocol, Alexis."

Laughing, a brown-haired woman with the most bright, twinkly, glittering green eyes stepped into the room, walking up to Looker and hugging him. "Welcome to Driftveil, Looker. Its been a long time."

It had. The woman greeting Looker was Alexis Reid, current Chief of Police in Driftveil City, and had been Looker's friend in Police Academy. A year older than him, Alexis had acted like a mentor to Looker, before leaving a year before him. He hadn't realised she held such a high position, or that she'd moved to Unova.

Croagunk smiled at Alexis, reaching out a hand to her, but the Chief froze.

Looker realised. "You're afraid of Pokemon, aren't you?" She was- in the Academy she had been mentally scarred after an Arcanine attacked her. "Sorry about that.."

"Its fine," she said, quickly snatching Croagunk's hand and shaking it. "I've heard about your infamous Croagunk. He's harmless, so its good." She moved on quickly, looking a little nervy. "Right, lets begin, shall we?"

"Yeah, ah wanna get started. Its about time ah did somethin' 'gainst them Plasma fools," came a gruff voice from the door in a Southern accent (the 'time' pronounced as 'tahm').

Looker turned to see a stocky, middle aged man wearing brown chaps, a brown jacket and a large white 10-gallon hat. His brown, honest eyes were framed by brown, tufty hair, and he carried a large suitcase with him, similar to Looker's suitcase of disguises.

"Gym Leader Clay," Alexis said, nodding courteously, as the teens waved, recognising him. "I didn't think you'd come."

"Sure ah'd come!" Clay said, as he shook Looker's hand- Looker noted the rough skin from years of hard work. "Ah want ma revenge on those Sages!"

"Revenge?" Looker asked.

"Damn straight! That Zinzolin bastard conned me a couple'a years back! Ah trusted him, as a respected banker, to get a good price for a mine ah no longer wanted- next thing ah knew, he found as many property loopholes as he could, and ah wake up having lost half'a my mines! Sage Bronius owned 'em all now!"

"Very clever," Looker said. "That Zinzolin is cunning. We need to take special care around him."

"That's why I asked Gym Leader Clay for help," Alexis said. "His Ground-types may just prove useful against Zinzolin's Poison-types."

"But even then, we have to deal with Ryoku's Bugs," argued Hilbert.

Reece smiled. "Nope! Ryoku only managed to grab one Pokeball before he escaped- his Shedinja."

Looker nodded- Shedinja had been knocked out earlier in the day by Croagunk, and even if Ryoku had healed it, it only took one super effective hit to knock it out. "Never mind that. Finding the Sages before they escape the city is our major priority. Alexis, what's the news on that?"

"Our ground teams haven't found anybody as of yet, and helicopters armed with heat-seeking infrared haven't picked them up. Nobody's left though- all exits, all avenues of escape, have been closed off."

"Then they're still here," Looker said, nodding.

"They are," Matt agreed, opening his laptop. "And I know where they are."

A stunned silence filled the room.

"Boy, ya better know what yer talking about," said Clay, finally.

Matt nodded. "Looker, remember what I told you about Zinzolin on your first day here?"

"You told me a lot of things," Looker said, trying to remember. "Poison, Psychic, Ghost and Dark type user, from Hearthome, French accented.."

"And, his job. Zinzolin is not only a banker- he's Unova's biggest real estate broker, and his company owns around a quarter of Unova's empty buildings. Including many in Driftveil."

"But how do you narrow it down?" Anna said, quietly.

Matt smiled. "Well, remember the time we tried to arrest Zinzolin? He was wearing a scarf and gloves, in the middle of the day in Castelia, where the hot desert winds blow in from the north. It wasn't just that day either- he wears it everywhere, from what I've seen on surveillance." He paused for impact. "He's used to the cold. And there's a building in Driftveil that is very cold, so cold in fact that anyone inside would not show up on a heat-seeking camera. That building is owned by Zinzolin's company, and has been for over 6 months- any offers for it have been rejected. I reckon he's adapted it as a base."

"Where?" Bianca asked.

Matt looked triumphant. "The Cold Storage."

Silence descended once more as people turned this over in their heads.

"Matt Damon," Hilbert said finally, "you are a god."

"Damn yer good!" Clay said, slapping him heartily on the back. "Ever considered bein' a Detective?"

Matt shrugged it off. "I'm happy here. Well, Chief Reid, what do we do now?"

Alexis looked shocked. "Don't look at me! Its Looker's job to organise us!"

Looker's head popped up. "No way! You're higher ranking than me, and this is your city!"

"Ah, but you are a Detective, pursuing a fugitive into my city. The directive says the lead officer in pursuit outranks a city official any day. And besides, its your investigation, not mine."

Looker sighed- she'd trumped him with the protocol. That's why she ranked higher than him. "Fine, you win. I'm in charge." He paused. "Unless Clay..."

Clay laughed, barking. "Don't bring me into this, son! Yer the boss!"

Croagunk put his hand up, suggesting he'd like to be in charge, but Looker blanked him. "Fine. Lets go to the Cold Storage, team. And on the way, could someone please explain to me what the Hell it is, since I'm the only one here who doesn't know?"

**(***)**

In the southernmost section of Driftveil City, part of the expansive commercial harbour holds every single container of cargo that comes into the port, storing it until further distribution. In the middle of the sprawling maze of steel boxes nestles a small area where wild grass grows, and where ice spreads across the floor- this is because of the giant cooling machines in the area, powered by immense, whirring generators. This is the Cold Storage of Unova.

Looker shivered as the group slowly moved its way through the containers, frost crunching under their feet from the cold. He felt hemmed in by the towering walls of steel, the biting cold emanating off their walls and piercing right through him. It didn't help that it was dark. There was a fuzzy glow from LED lamps dangling at random intervals, but the night was setting in early in Driftveil. The storm had remained too: rain was lashing down, hammering on the metal containers, and turning freezing when it hit the cold air. Combined with strong winds, they were nightmare conditions for the team to be caught in.

He turned to Hilbert, trudging through the ice beside him looking thoughtful. "Did nobody ever think this was suspicious?" he asked, raising his voice as a gust of wind howled past. "I mean, you've got around 5 square miles of containers being refrigerated, but there's nothing in them! Surely that's a little odd?"

Hilbert shrugged. "I think people assumed that Zinzolin's company found a bidder interested in using it for cold storage, and that they were running it. I remember seeing him here once actually, when we were passing through. Ghetsis got him off the hook that time."

"He won't this time," said Bastian determinedly, cracking his knuckles. "We'll get Zinzolin, and Ryoku too."

Cheren was shivering worse than Looker, and his teeth chattered as he spoke. "This amount of cold air is stupid. How can Zinzolin like this?"

"Zinzolin loves ice, and everything cold to go with it," Tash answered, goosebumps on her pale face. "If it wasn't for Sage Gorm being an Ice-type expert, Zinzolin would claim that type for himself. His Weavile is by far his favourite Pokemon."

"A sneaky, furtive, evil Pokemon," Looker said. "Like master, like Pokemon." He was cut short by loud, raised voices suddenly piercing through the dusk sky. The team fell silent instantaneously, and flattened themselves against the cold containers, as around the corner, in an area of tall grass, Zinzolin and a shivering Ryoku paced in a circle, while two Grunts, the same pair who rescued Ryoku, stood on guard outside the open doors of a very large container, their faces and fingers blue from the cold. Croagunk nodded in satisfaction as he saw the bandage on the arm of the female Grunt, from where he'd shot her that very morning as they fled.

Looker put his finger to his lips, and everyone nodded, listening in as their fingers inched closer to Pokeballs, itching to throw their Pokemon out to fight the two Sages. But Looker was wary- he knew the power Zinzolin had, and he knew it would be difficult even for 12 people and their Pokemon to take down even one Sage, let alone two. So he listened..

"...You think Looker come?" Ryoku said, in his slurred English.

Zinzolin waved a hand. "Ha! I KNOW zat 'e will come! Looker is no idiot! He will work out zat we are 'ere soon, if not now. Even if 'e goes to check every property I own in Driftveil on ze way, 'e will find us. I just 'ope zat ze extraction team arrives before zat."

Ryoku smiled weakly. "You no hear what other Sages say, huh?"

"What did zey say?" Zinzolin asked in his strong French accent, paling a little.

"They complete my mission while they break me out. Stage 1 of grand Team Plasma scheme, complete. They no need me no more to complete it."

Zinzolin paused. "So zey don't need you free anymore?"

"No. Stage 2 begin now. They tell me, you know what need to happen for Stage 2 to be complete..."

Zinzolin looked furious. "'ow dare zey? After all zat les Grunts and I 'ave done! Zey expect me to do zat, to go quietly into Looker's arms, ready for ze cells! I know ze plan needs it, but zis is not 'ow I go! No more!" He suddenly drew every Pokeball on his belt at once, and six Pokemon appeared snarling around him- an Arbok, a Skuntank, a Gengar, a Mandibuzz, a Weavile and the infamous brute, Drapion. "Sage Zinzolin will not go down wizzout a fight! Come and get me Looker, mon ami!" He yelled this last bit out to the entire docks, the echo reverberating off the containers.

"Can we go inside?" Ryoku asked. "I no feel my nose anymore..."

Zinzolin scoffed. "Bah! Zis is affreux! Am I ze only one who doesn't suffer from ze cold?"

"You are wrapped up rather warm, sir," the male Grunt pointed out. "And you are used to this. Whereas I wasn't prepared for an Arctic expedition when I signed up.."

Zinzolin tutted. "Fine. Go inside, to plan battle strategies and warm up. Zere is no point making everyone unhappy..."

Ryoku turned on his heel and rapidly retreated into the container, the Grunts on his tail, and Zinzolin remained outside, dark, slitty eyes darting about as he observed the Cold Storage, whistling 'The Girl from Ipanema' as his Pokemon took up defensive positions, waiting.

Hilda turned to Looker. "Stage 2? The Plan? What are they talking about?" she whispered.

Looker shook his head, not knowing, intrigued yet worried at the same time. "I have no idea. But he is so arrogant- he is really starting to get on my nerves."

"What's our plan?" Tash asked, hushed.

"Lemme at him!" Clay breathed, fingers tapping impatiently on Pokeballs, as if he couldn't restrain himself. "Y'all know ah wanna hit that son-of-a-bitch as hard as ah can! I need payback!"

"Patience," Cheren whispered, patting the Gym Leader. "You'll get your revenge soon. But I don't think a full frontal assault is the best thing..."

Looker was trying to figure out a plan, working on what he had (7 Police Officers, a Gym Leader and 4 top Trainers), what was in front of him (a bottleneck alley, a wall of containers, only one exit), and what Zinzolin had (6 super-powerful Pokemon, 1 other Sage, 1 injured Grunt and a Grunt with a machine gun, plus the Grunts' Pokemon). Then Alexis tapped him on the shoulder. "Huh?"

"I have an idea," Driftveil's Chief whispered, before bending down to whisper it in his ear.

Looker paused, taking it all in, then grinned at the end. "That's why you were my mentor. That's brilliant! That might just work, if we can fight back against Zinzolin. Go, go and do it now! I'll brief the others..." As Alexis ran off, he told the others in short what she'd planned. "Any questions?"

"I guess that's why she's Chief in Driftveil," Matt said, smiling. "That might just work."

Cheren and Clay both frowned. "So basically, our plan IS a full-frontal, charge-of-the-Light-Brigade assault?" Cheren asked sardonically.

"Yes," Looker nodded. "And you do it like this." He suddenly twisted, turning round the corner with Croagunk on his shoulder and striding purposefully towards Zinzolin. "Francois Zinzolin, mon ami! Its good to see you again! I haven't seen you since Castelia..."

"Looker!" the Sage snapped, as his Pokemon roared. His Drapion grinned, remembering the Detective. "You found me!"

"After some tricky Detective work, yes." Looker flashed his badge, as the Grunts and Ryoku came running from inside the container. "I've come to arrest you and Sage Ichiri Ryoku for conspiracy to commit treason as a leading member of Team Plasma."

"Bah!" Zinzolin grinned like a Sharpedo as the Grunts drew their Bushmasters and his Pokemon circled Looker, making Croagunk a little nervous. "You and what army, monsieur?"

"This army!" came the yell from the corner, and Zinzolin wheeled in shock to see the Police, the young Trainers and Clay advancing on him. Many Pokemon were out including Brav, Reece's Porygon-Z, Clay's Palpitoad and more, and guns were drawn, Clay holding a six-shooter that was pointed steadily at the Sage.

Ryoku looked stunned. "Shit. I think Looker win."

Zinzolin shook himself. "Non! Looker shall never win! Get 'im!" He pulled something from his belt, and Looker raised his eyebrows in shock as Zinzolin dropped the smoke bomb...

Grey smog blasted out around him, covering the area, and Looker felt the air ripple around him as Pokemon moved. He heard behind him the surprised noise Ryoku made; trying to flee in the darkness, the Sage had run into the wall of every Police Officer, Reece's Metagross, and Buoh (Hilbert's Emboar), the wall had blocked off the only exit, the way Looker's group had came in. Looker didn't have time to smile though, as a wayward Sludge Bomb fizzed over his head, Croagunk dodging it and disappearing into the cloud.

"Get him team!" Looker yelled. "You know the plan, get them boxed in!" He was cut short by a random burst from a Bushmaster, and he dived to the floor to avoid it.

Something lurched in the darkness, and as he looked up a tail slammed to the floor beside him, as Zinzolin's Arbok glared menacingly down at him, fangs bared viciously, jabbing out to try and bite Looker. He rolled to one side to avoid it, but the tail smashed down into the ground again, stopping him from moving, and the Arbok cried out happily, having cornered its victim. The long tail started to quickly lift Looker up and wrap around him, constricting him tightly in the Arbok's coils, making him choke as he lost breath, as the serpent's head loomed overhead, preparing to sink its teeth into Looker's flesh with a Bite and kill him, the pattern on its chest sinisterly grinning at the same time...

At the last moment the Arbok was hit in the chest with a blast of Psychic energy that knocked it back from Looker, where it lay coiled protectively, hissing.

Reece appeared through the clouds, his Porygon-Z at his side, Looker's saviour. "Get it Z! Ice Beam!"

The Ice Beam collided with a Gunk Shot in mid air, splattering everywhere, making Looker gasp as a blob struck his finger and burnt him until he wiped it off. The Arbok uncoiled its full length, hissing, before lunging into a jump, fangs bared in a Fire Fang attack. Z hit it in mid-leap with a Tri Attack, but it didn't seem to have much effect, and Arbok hit home on Reece's Pokemon with full force. As Z cried out, feeling the full effects of a burn, Reece yelled "Come on Z, Psychic now!", which prompted the Virtual Pokemon to shake itself, willing itself on for its master. Its eyes glowed as it glared into Arbok's terrifying visage defiantly, before from close range the blast of Psychic energy ripped into the Cobra Pokemon, launching it back and across the grass into the side of a container, the impact of the metal combining with the super-effective Psychic move to knock Arbok out.

Looker pulled himself up, and kicked the Cobra in the chest to be sure. "One down," he said happily, relieved at finally beating one of Zinzolin's Pokemon. "Nice work Reece, Z!" Before they could reply he ran off into the smog. He still needed to find Zinzolin..

The storm had reached the docks fully now, the gales blowing the smoke away, revealing the scene to Looker even through the cold, torrential rain. Matt and Bianca were down, out cold, along with most of Cheren's Pokemon except his Samurott and Unfezant, most of Hilda's Pokemon except her Serperior Amanda, Bastian's Lucario, Tash's Dodrio, Anna's Ambipom, Clay's Palpitoad and Matt's Sawsbuck.

However, they were having their own successes. Along with Arbok, Zinzolin's Gengar and Skuntank, the latter with a gaping wound for a neck that looked like it had been torn open. Blood dripped from the jaws of the culprit, the furiously battling Krokorok of Clay, and stained the icy floor as the Gym Leader led a charge against his nemesis, pushing Zinzolin back. As Looker watched, Zinzolin's Mandibuzz fell too, to rather strange circumstances- Hilbert's Galvantula, Tula, had found a group of wild Vanillite living in the long grass, and had got them to gang up on the Mandibuzz, finally making it fall to an Electroweb, the knocked out bird nearly impaling itself on an icicle, a wild Herdier tearing at its limp body with Bites.

Looker spotted Zinzolin looking very angry, trying to get his Grunts to fight back with their Pokemon and help him (it appeared their Bushmasters had been wrecked by a Pokemon). "'ow are zey so much stronger zan last time? We are ze elite: it should be easier zan zis for us!"

Looker charged towards the Sage, intent on pushing him back in the container, leaping over the fallen body of the Skuntank as the earth shook from an Earthquake attack by Clay's Krokorok. But Looker hadn't taken into account one thing- Zinzolin still had two Pokemon left out there, fighting to the knockout for their freedom.

"Wea VILE!" A blur of black lunged at Looker screaming, claws glinting in a Night Slash attack that slashed through Looker's jacket into his arm, making him yell as he fell over flailing. The Weavile laughed triumphantly as it landed lightly and nimbly on his chest, digging its foot claws into him, dodging a punch from Looker acrobatically before landing an Ice Punch onto Looker's nose with a loud crack, the sheer cold biting into the wound, before the Weavile, Zinzolin's cunning, deceiving, malicious, hostile favourite Pokemon, prepared another Night Slash that would cut through his throat...

Looker swore as the ground suddenly erupted around him, as something large emerged with a Metal Claw attack that parried the Night Slash intended for him, a loud clang reverberating through the air. Clay's Excadrill, the Gym Leader's prize Pokemon, had arrived, Digging up at the optimum moment, and Looker thanked Clay with a nod as he scrambled back up, while Excadrill hit Weavile with a Drill Run before Digging back under.

Weavile defiantly spat out a tooth, grinning a bloody, evil grin at Looker, before slowly walking forward with its own Metal Claw. This time though a Focus Blast flew from nowhere to impact with it, and as the dust cleared, Weavile pulled itself up to come face to face with a pissed-off Croagunk, standing in a karate stance defensively in front of Looker.

"Croa. Gunk," he said, which Looker translated as 'over my dead body'.

Weavile smirked, then suddenly leapt forward with a Metal Claw that Croagunk blocked with a Poison Jab, but Looker's Pokemon couldn't dodge the Night Slash after, or the Ice Punch, or...

Before Weavile could hit the next Ice Punch, Croagunk jabbered a gruesome battle cry, an orange aura flying up around himself as his eyes glowed, and a glowing fist threw a very powerful, 4x effective Revenge attack at Weavile. This was followed up by a Rock Smash, and a Poison Jab, and a Rock Smash, as Croagunk gave Weavile no room to manoeuvre. Weavile tried one Metal Claw, which hit home, but Croagunk retaliated viciously with another Revenge, before a final Focus Blast exploded against Zinzolin's stalwart...

Croagunk stood triumphantly over the knocked out Dark-Ice type, fists balled. "Croa!"

"Nice work buddy," Looker said, patting Croagunk on the back, before he turned to face Zinzolin in the centre. The two Grunts were knocked out, slumped against the inside wall of the container, and as Looker watched Bastian strode towards the container holding a struggling Ryoku in a vice grip. Zinzolin stood in the doorway, his only Pokemon left standing being his mega-powerful Drapion, which looked battered and weary, ready to just give up the fight, such was the ferocity of the Police attack. All of Zinzolin's others had been returned to their Ultra Balls, except for Skuntank, whose corpse lay in a puddle, its fur sodden as rain lashed down.

"Face it Zinzolin, its over," Hilbert said, looking quite bloody, but to illustrate his point he threw up a Master Ball into the air, finally releasing Reshiram into the battle, the cold air condensating into mild drizzle around the blazing tail.

"No! Never!" Zinzolin said desperately. "I fight until ze end! Drapion, Cross Poison!"

The Ogre Scorp looked at his master as if he was stupid- not even the brute Drapion could take on a fully healthy Legendary and a whole host of other Pokemon. Drapion shook his head adamantly, raising his arm pincers in a gesture of surrender.

"What?!" Zinzolin was beside himself. "Zis is outrageous! Attack, attack! Do it now, sacre bleu!"

Drapion sighed, not wanting anything more to do with it, before reaching with his tail pincer to Zinzolin's belt, pushing the button on his Pokeball and shutting himself back away in it, leaving Zinzolin alone.

"Mon dieu!" the French Sage yelled. "Must I do everyzing myself?!" He reached inside his big purple coat, and Looker realised immediately what he was doing, what the bulge in his clothing really was.

"No!" Looker yelled, sprinting forward as Zinzolin pulled a SIG Sauer pistol from his coat, lining up on and pulling the trigger once, twice before Looker, charging at him, wrenched the gun out of his palm, sending the next shot wide as the gun skidded across the icy floor to rest at the feet of Hilbert.

"Oh no you don't," Looker muttered grimly, throwing his knee up into the Sage's stomach, making him groan in pain. A flying elbow from Zinzolin smashed Looker in the side of the face, and Looker bit down hard on his gums by accident, drawing blood. Zinzolin faught dirtily, but so did Looker: as Zinzolin grabbed him by the shoulders to prepare to headbutt him, Looker spat the blood he had in his mouth into Zinzolin's eyes, before following up with a kick to the groin (as per Police protocol) and another knee in the stomach.

Looker grimaced as he hauled the groaning Zinzolin to his feet to prepare to arrest him, but the moaning Sage suddenly jumped out of his grasp and stumbled into the container he'd held as his base, Ryoku managing to finally wriggle clear of Bastian's grip to join him.

Zinzolin glared at Looker. "You shall not win zis!" he snarled, turning around and limping quickly towards a wall rack where several loaded Bushmasters hung, preparing to get a gun to shoot Looker.

"We've got him!" Looker yelled triumphantly. "Get the doors!"

As Zinzolin turned with one of the guns in his hand, Reece and Cheren ran to the double doors at the front of the container, pushing as hard as possible to shut them. The Sage realised he'd been tricked, and had stupidly trapped himself in the container in the heat of the moment. "No!" He opened fire with the Bushmaster as the doors slammed shut, shots peppering the metal, which shielded the Police from any danger. "Merde!"

"Someone get the back door!" Looker shouted, as more and more holes started appearing, the sound of the bullets striking the doors ringing through the air, the echo of the guns in the containers loud and clear.

"Done it," said Clay, coming back around the front as Looker rapidly slid the bar lock across. "They're trapped."

"And in the nick of time too," Tash said, as a loud whirring noise was heard overhead.

Looker stared up, into the pouring rain, squinting to see into the murky shadows that suddenly fell across him as a monstrous steel behemoth towered above him. The final piece of Alexis' plan had arrived, driven along its rails across the length of Driftveil Docks to rest over the Cold Storage- the port's container crane. Normally it would be used to unload metal containers from cargo ships, safely transferring them onto the shore, but today, it had a different purpose.

Looker's Xtransceiver rang, barely audible over the noise of the rain and the whirring of machinery as the crane started to come down and latch onto the container Zinzolin and Ryoku were trapped in. "Hello?"

"I guess our plan worked huh?" Alexis' voice was loud in his ear.

"It was an excellent plan," Looker agreed- by distracting Zinzolin with a battle, they'd pushed him further and further back towards the container until they could trap him in it. "Good job you can operate this thing. But what now?"

"I'll take this," at this point the container started rising into the air, pulled up by the crane, which started rolling along its rails, "to one of the freighters currently docked in the port, the Orient Star. On the Star's deck is a SWAT team who will circle and surround the container, before disarming the Sages, taking them into custody."

Looker nodded, as the crane started to disappear with its cargo. "Excellent! Good job!" He was cut short by a shocked scream behind him, and he whirled to see the cause of it. Looker had forgotten that two bullets from Zinzolin's pistol had found their mark before he stopped the Sage- that target was Anna, whose side was bleeding profusely, a gaping hole in her white T-shirt. "No!"

"Looker, what's the matter? Looker?!"

"Get me a medic team down here, now, ASAP!" Looker shouted, running over to Anna's side and turning the phone off as he cradled the young Asian girl's head in his arms, ripping off his jacket and dabbing at the wounds, desperately trying to stem the tide of blood leaving her body and mixing with the ice on the floor. He realised that Matt and Bianca were still down too, and that several Pokemon lay injured around him, needing urgent attention from Nurse Joy and the hospital staff. "Anna.."

Her eyelids fluttered, the delicate black makeup she wore running as a tear trickled down her cheek, her breathing ragged. "Did... did we win?"

"We won," Looker said hoarsely, nodding, his own tears at seeing his team mate critically injured mixing with the rainwater that poured down his face. "Come on Anna, fight it!"

"I will," she said softly, with a determined edge to her voice. She coughed delicately, and now her eyes were losing focus, starting to mist over beneath her glasses. "I'm.. gonna make it. I will.. I will..." She sighed, a long, drawn out breath, and those deep black eyes flickered softly, before they closed over, her face looking angelic and peaceful.

"Anna!" Looker cried, alarmed, feeling for a pulse frantically, desperate to not lose an Officer on duty, trying not to choke as the bile rose in his throat. He did not want to be responsible for this woman's death...

"Gunk," Croagunk said softly, his hand pressed down against the side of her neck. He took Looker's hand and gently placed it at the spot, and Looker's heart skipped a beat; the faintest of heartbeats was there, still fighting death.

He heaved a sigh of relief, joy washing over him in waves. "Thank God." He lifted Anna's head and pressed it to his chest, holding her tightly, water cascading over his fringe and down his nose even though the storm had finally abated, even though the moon and stars were now shining brightly over him, free of their prison of cloud, glimmering in the freezing night sky. He had come so close to losing Anna, to losing Zinzolin and Ryoku, to failing, but it had been a success in the end. Looker had won...

**A/N: Wow, that was fun! Looker has beaten Zinzolin at last, and now that's two Sages under arrest! But what is this 'Stage 2' Ryoku has referred to? :D**

**Next chapter- Aurelius learns of the Cold Storage fight, Looker stumbles in on something vital and... ANOTHER EPIC BATTLE? SO SOON? Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading folks! A review is always appreciated, and until next time adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	9. A Phonecall and a Funeral

**A/N: Well here we are! Chapter 9 of the Chase! :D my Christmas holidays have started now, so updates should hopefully all be on time/quicker. Anywhere, here we shall see the aftermath of the epic Driftveil battle, more Sage accents (but no MattxTash, or Mashshipping as its known now :D), plus a surprise phone call, some sadness, and... a SHOWDOWN?! I hope you enjoy! On with the show...**

Commissioner Aurelius sat alone in his office once more, watching over Castelia City with a thoughtful look on his face, bags under his eyes where he'd stayed up most of the night. The first rays of a late morning sunrise were starting to throw the shadows of the streets into the light, and commuters were starting to appear in force, scurrying once more on their routines that fascinated the Commissioner so much. A lone, loud, mournful boat horn sounded as Aurelius watched a large freighter approaching the city, headed for the harbour of Driftveil, and a tug boat left Castelia to join it, leaving from the pier that until recently had been occupied by Sage Ryoku's boat, the Team Plasma escape launch.

Thinking about the events of the day before made Aurelius shudder uncomfortably, thinking of the hectic rush that had been the chase to find Ryoku and arrest him again. Then the word 'Driftveil' stuck in his head, an echo that seemed to surround his office, and he sighed deeply, heavily. The conflict at the Cold Storage had been vicious, and Anna Maeda had been left hanging onto life, clinging to it by a thread; he hoped to Arceus he wouldn't see such brutality towards his investigating officers again. Zinzolin had been excessively violent...

He started fidgeting, fiddling nervously with the ring on his fat finger as he rose to walk around his desk, a difficult task for a man of his size. He leaned against the pillar beside the huge window that made up his wall, and tried to lay his mind at peace, taking a sip from a mug of coffee laced with Victreebel sap (he'd found out Looker's secret). He watched, as rush hour began to set in in Castelia, as the streets were slowly rammed, then his gaze flicked up, watching the tug dance around the huge freighter and attach itself like a Kangaskhan and its baby, surging forward along the waterway, bound for... Driftveil...

Aurelius' train of thought was interrupted by the loud, insistent ringing of the old, corded phone on his desk. He sighed happily, putting the coffee down, and picking up the phone. "Yes?"

"Sergeant Forsyth sir," came the rasp. "Looker and the team are on their way up."

Aurelius nodded, his throat sticking; they'd bring news of Anna. "Thank you Forsyth." He paused, and coughed. "You sound a little... under the weather, Sergeant."

"No sir, I'm fine," came the reply, followed by a hacking cough sound. "Just a little tired. I think last night's mania in Driftveil took it out of all of us."

"Hear hear," Aurelius said mournfully, putting the phone down and sliding back into his chair as the elevator bell dinged.

Looker was the first to emerge as the doors slid open, Croagunk perched on his shoulder as always, dark shadows beneath the eyes of the smoking Toxic Mouth Pokemon, who obviously didn't like his master's invigorating coffee blend. Matt and Tash followed (Aurelius knew now that they were dating), followed by Bastian, who looked sullen, a dark cloud brewing in his eyes. Reece was perhaps most lively, having really taken to Victreebel-laced coffee, but even he lacked his usual fire and spark, his usual happiness. Hilbert looked solemn alongside his sister Hilda, and Cheren and Bianca...

Aurelius frowned. "Where're Cheren and Bianca?"

Looker saluted, a drawn-out, long, weary gesture. "Last night, in Driftveil, Bianca was seriously injured by Zinzolin's Pokemon. She broke her left ankle trying to flee on the ice, and suffered serious poison damage from a Toxic attack Zinzolin's Skuntank fired at her, before it knocked her out. She's resting in Nuvema Town now, waiting for her ankle to heal before she rejoins the investigation, and Cheren's staying at her side while she heals."

"Good on him," Aurelius said. "Matt, I've heard reports you were injured in the brawl?"

Matt simply shook his head, leaving Looker to talk. "He was knocked out, but apparently he's fine now. He wants to get on with this investigation."

"Hmm... Zinzolin's Skuntank, the one who injured Bianca, was killed by Clay's Krokorok.."

"Krokorok finished it off, yes. However, most of the damage was done by Cheren sir; I think his exact words were 'Don't touch my girlfriend'."

Aurelius nodded. "Zinzolin will be furious. Not only did you take out his Pokemon this time, but you killed one of them."

"Yes sir. We've sorted Zinzolin and Ryoku out down in the cells, with the most secure cells we can find. Zinzolin's surviving Pokemon have been locked away in evidence, along with all of his other personal effects, including another locked Pokeball."

"Another one?" Aurelius asked. "Ryoku had one too..."

"I know sir. We're looking into it now. Bastian, as interrogation officer, has been up most of the night questioning Zinzolin on his own, and we all joined him for one session. Zinzolin... is even more arrogant than Ghetsis though. Very difficult to interview, often refusing to speak to us because he's furious that we beat him."

"And he shuts himself away in his own little world when we mention 'the Plan'," Matt said quietly, the first time someone other than Aurelius and Looker had spoken.

"Yes, the secret little 'Plan'," Aurelius said, tracing a pattern in the dust of his desk with a finger. "How interesting that little slip of the tongue is..."

"Are you going to go and interview him, sir?" Tash asked. "You know, Commissioner's Interrogation Time? Ask him about 'The Plan'?"

"After all my meetings today, yes." Aurelius looked up at the team. "Good work team. A very successful operation, and the press haven't got a sniff of it."

"Thank you sir," said Reece. "We're sorry we let Ryoku slip out of our grasp."

"Don't be. Everything's fine now. Oh, and Reece? After listening to accounts from all superior officers, I've decided to give you a promotion to Corporal, based on your superb conduct and actions on mission. The ceremony will be held when every last Sage has been captured. And I'm promoting you too Croagunk- I know you're technically a Detective, and that's not my department, but you're in my region, and I feel that you're deserving."

"Th..thank you sir!" Reece said, saluting sharply despite a little nervous wobble. Croagunk gave his usual two-fingered mock salute, and tried to put his cigarette out on Looker's coat, which looked remarkably clean and tidy considering the amount of blood and claw/bite marks it had gained the night before.

Hilda grinned. "That's a promotion, and a key to Driftveil, all in one day Reece!"

"Key to Driftveil?" Aurelius asked, raising his eyebrows.

Looker smiled weakly. "The Keys to the City ceremony sir. Every team member got a Key. A thank you from Gym Leader Clay for helping him defeat his long-time nemesis, and from Chief Reid for getting Team Plasma out of her city. They've even fixed the drawbridge now sir."

Aurelius nodded, and silence descended in the office, but Looker could see the Commissioner looked worried, anxious, a bead of sweat forming on his brow.

"Umm... Looker?" he asked.

"Yes sir?"

"...Anna?" The name came out almost as a whisper.

"She'll make it."

Aurelius sighed a huge sigh of relief, collapsing down into his chair and wiping his brow. "Thank God for that..."

"While Bastian stayed up all night in the interviewing room, we sat by her bedside with her," Hilbert said. "We needed to make sure she was alright."

"It was a close thing," Hilda added.

"Too close," murmured Reece. "She nearly died."

"Croa..." Croagunk said, blowing a mournful smoke ring, putting the cigarette down in the Commissioner's ashtray and looking sad: the near-death of Anna had hurt him deeply (though he didn't like to show it), as she was always nice to him.

"She's on life support at the moment sir," Looker said, speaking up. "Nurse Joy predicts she'll be off it in a week, and ready for active work in a fortnight. We were lucky- a couple of inches higher and she'd have died. They've removed the bullet, and it was unbelievably close to killing her."

"Thank God she survived," Aurelius breathed. "Though it means we're without three team members for at least a week now. Would you like me to transfer anyone in? Perhaps get Chief Reid involved more?"

"No sir," Looker said. "Our team is fine as it is."

Aurelius nodded. "If you're sure. What are the team going to do today? I think you've all earned a day off..."

"Absolutely not sir," Matt declared resolutely. "Not a chance."

"We know what happens when we take time off from hunting Team Plasma," Hilbert said darkly, remembering his decision to take Looker for a Gym Battle and the chaos that followed. "No, we're staying on the hunt for them."

"I understand." The Commissioner paused. "There is something you could do for me though."

"Gunk.." Croagunk said, curious.

Aurelius reached down into his desk and pulled out a single Pokeball, placing it carefully in the palm of Hilda.

"Is this the locked Pokeball sir?" Hilda asked, confused. "Or yours?"

"Neither. I talked to you earlier about Zinzolin's Skuntank, which died on the mission. What happened to it, by the way?"

"Took it to CSI," Bastian rumbled suddenly, a deep, mellow voice. "They analysed it, tested it, checked it and cleaned it. The autopsy report is done, and its in a sealed bag in a locked room in CSI, ready for evidence. Or for cremation."

Aurelius nodded. "But Zinzolin's Skuntank wasn't the only Pokemon to die in that battle. Anna's Ambipom did too."

There was a shocked silence as this sank in.

"No..." Hilbert breathed, stunned by this revelation.

Aurelius nodded solemnly, his fat chin wobbling. "She died when Zinzolin fired the second bullet, missing the humans; it went through her skull, between the eyes."

Looker remained silent as Aurelius talked; it was his twist of Zinzolin's wrist that diverted the gun away from the humans, and he was responsible for Ambipom's death. Then he spoke up. "Its my fault.."

"No!" Matt said suddenly. "You had no idea where that bullet would go, and by diverting it you saved Anna's life!"

"He's right Looker," Aurelius agreed. "Anna won't know that her Pokemon is dead, and won't until she's out of hospital, but Ambipom died in the line of duty, and this means a Police burial is needed."

"You want us to do the service," Tash said, understanding.

"Yes I do, and I regret that a full day of meetings means I can't go, but the rest of you should. You're all dressed smart, so a Police funeral will be simple. Go to the Dreamyard in Striaton City, and talk to the Gatekeeper about the Police memorial. Every Police Pokemon who died in the line of duty is buried by the memorial, and their name is inscribed on it after a little remembrance speech. Put Ambipom to rest, and let her be forever remembered, for the job she did in fighting crime in Unova." Aurelius looked up at the team again. Was that a hint of a tear in the corner of his eye? "She deserves to rest in peace."

Looker nodded solemnly. "We can do that sir. Come on people, let's bury her."

As the team trooped into the elevator, Looker glanced one last time into the office, nodding to the Commissioner sadly as the doors slid shut, wiping away his own tear. It would be a soulful, sad day for the Police, but they would always remember how much they'd worked, and how Ambipom had been killed, in the struggle to secure peace in Unova, to bring the Sages to justice at last. As they descended in silence, Looker thought to himself and made a vow, a promise that he would not let anyone else, human or Pokemon, die on his team. He himself would fight to the death to ensure that they lived, and out loud, he announced his promise to them at last, that he would make sure they were safe, that they would be there until the end of Plasma...

**(***)**

Looker felt uncomfortable, walking through Striaton City with the team. It had been a mere 24 hours since he'd came here with Hilbert for lunch and a Gym Battle, which kick-started the entire Ryoku freedom bid, and started the move which resulted in the serious injury of Anna, the injury of Bianca, and the death of Anna's Ambipom. Looker's heart was heavy and hollow, and while he should have been happy that he'd arrested two of the six Sages on the run, he wasn't sure whether it was worth the sacrifice of a Pokemon.

Hilbert led the way through the city, a peaceful, rural place where people and Pokemon existed in harmony. Looker found himself wondering how Team Plasma could justify their aims when there was such beautiful tranquility in Striaton, and noted the vibrant architecture of the place. Something like architecture bored Croagunk though, and when Hilbert started showing people the Trainer's School, he impatiently hopped off Looker's shoulder and started leading the way himself, even though he had no idea where he was going. Looker knew Croagunk was right though; when they were going to a funeral, they shouldn't be stopping for a look at the buildings.

Walking east through the city they came to the border, and, passing through a gate, arrived in a place so vast and derelict it put the Relic Castle to shame.

"Here we are," Hilbert said, as Croagunk stopped in awe. "The Dreamyard."

The Dreamyard lay in ruin, a crumbling, sprawling labyrinth of high concrete walls and dusty floors. Long grass and small saplings grew from the floor in patches, as nature assaulted the wreckage and tried to reclaim what the concrete had previously stolen, while metal poles poked haphazardly from the walls like bones sticking out of the corpse that the building had become. It had become a jungle, no longer the proud building it used to be.

Little titbits of information flowed from the mouths of the Unovans as Looker listened, soaking up the knowledge about the building's past as they walked. It had been built as a research facility looking into the power of Dream Mist, a powerful, ethereal, almost magical substance that made the inhaler hallucinate, creating illusions that they'd realised their dreams. Some scientists had attempted to harness the power from a Musharna, a creature that created Dream Mist, but the experiment, blighted by human greed, went wrong. The facility was wrecked, and the scientists packed up and left, leaving the Musharna to claim the ruins as its home.

"Interesting," Looker nodded, taking it all in, as the Police approached an old man wearing a belt of tools, leaning against a pillar, a spade and pick at his feet. He stood upright as the police came to a halt.

"Morning," Matt said, flashing his badge as he greeted the old man. "You'd be the Gatekeeper?"

"I am indeed," the old man nodded, picking up his tools. "The Commissioner phoned me this morning. You've got a Pokemon for the memorial?" When they nodded sadly, he shook his head. "I haven't had to do this for a while. Its sad. Its all because of this Team Plasma thing, I reckon. They preach about harmony, and yet they'll kill people who get in their way."

"Uh-huh," Tash said. "Ete died when we tried to arrest Team Plasma's Sage Zinzolin."

Croagunk looked questioningly at her, not because of hearing the Ambipom's name, but because he thought they weren't supposed to tell people they were after the Sages, but the Gatekeeper nodded. "I knew him a while back; he tried to buy this place off the Striaton Council. What a horrible man he was." He sighed. "Well, she died fighting for justice, and did her job well I assume, and gave everything she had to offer, even her life. That's inspiring, for someone to raise a Pokemon like that. Well, come on, follow me."

As the Police followed him inside the Dreamyard, towards a basement staircase, Looker's phone started ringing. He waved everyone else on, staying at the entrance with Croagunk, and answered it, noting the 'Unknown Caller' on the display. "Hello?"

"Detective Looker, at lasht," came the voice on the other end, a Dutch accent clear and thick. "Dish ish Willem Rood."

The realisation hit Looker like a bomb, and he froze, taken completely unaware. "S.. Sage Rood?"

"The one and only. Dat wash good! Even if you're de Detective who took down Galactic, I didn't expect you to be sho quick."

Looker suddenly became furious. "How did you get this number? And how did Zinzolin get it before you?"

"Heh, I have my shources, my waysh. I wash de one who gave dish number to Zinzolin."

"What do you want, Rood?" Looker snapped. "Why do you play with me like a toy, leave my Police hanging for a lead? Why do we have to waste lives trying to bring you to justice? Why can't Plasma just accept its dead and give up now?!"

There was a pause. "Shomeone'sh had dat on deir chesht for a while."

"Answer me!" The shout from Looker made Croagunk fall off his shoulder, and made several Trainers look over at the Detective in a worried way.

"Lishten, Looker," Rood said, "I apologishe for Zinzolin. He wash shtupid, and I certainly do not want to cause death and injury. Our caushe ish important, but not lethally. Well, I shay dat, but... I do have a different aim to my friendsh in de Shagesh."

Now Looker was surprised. "Wait, what?"

"Yesh... When I joined Plashma, I wash attracted by the aimsh of N, not by Ghetshish'sh plansh. I am peaceful by heart, and I shtrive for harmony. I want what our King wanted, a peaceful world, not a world of war and shtrife where Ghetshish rulesh shupreme, above all, crushing the people. And I am ashamed by Ghetshish."

"Huh," Looker said, not impressed. "Is that so? Then why are you still content to let Ghetsis lead Plasma?"

"I'm not content. I'm jusht ushing him. Ghetshish will rishe to de top, and when he doesh I will reveal my true intentionsh. I will split from Plashma, unite de people of Unova againsht him, ousht all evil preshencesh, and take every shtep to enshure dat peace is achieved. I will make thish region fair and jusht and pure."

To Looker that didn't sound too bad a plan. But there were flaws... "You're going to remain in power though after that. N won't take power, because he's afraid of the manipulation of the Sages, and because the people will love you you'll become leader of Unova."

"It ish needed, if harmony ish to be achieved. I musht lead, to prevent any shtrife and conflict in de world. I will fight against it.."

"Ha! I see what this is about! You want to appear like a man redeeming himself, become almost a saint to the people, but in reality you are taking over the region yourself! Not a chance! Unova won't forgive you for what you've done!"

"Looker, do not anger me!" There was a snarl to Rood's voice as he spoke. "You are making a powerful enemy here. I hide right under your very noshe, waiting for my time, and you won't cooperate! I am ashking you, let me do what I need to do to bring down Ghetshish! I want harmony. I am on your shide!"

"You're a Sage! You're not on my side! Ghetsis will not succeed, Sage Rood, and neither will you, because I will hunt you down and bring you to justice! Unova will remain free of Team Plasma so long as I live!" Looker hung up the Xtransceiver before the Sage could reply and sighed a huge sigh of relief, before he noticed a small child holding a balloon, gazing up at him in shock. "What?"

"Mr Balloon no like Mr Shouty Man," the small girl said, picking her nose.

"And Mr Shouty Man no like evil people who make him angry," Looker said in a juvenile voice, ruffling the girl's ginger hair. "Now go back to your parents."

As he turned on his heel smartly, Looker started debating whether what Rood had said was true, whether the Dutchman really wanted harmony, and what he meant by 'under his nose'. His train of thought was slightly interrupted by Croagunk though, who used his lit cigarette to burst the child's balloon, making her cry. Good old Croagunk...

Heading down the stairs to the basement Looker saw the rest of his team gathered with the Gatekeeper around a small memorial, a slab of stone on the wall engraved with a Police badge, and the solemn epitaph, 'They Did Their Duty'. Around the badge were grouped names of Pokemon, the species they were (Looker counted a lot of Arcanine and Growlithe), their Trainer and the date at which they'd passed away. The latest addition was clearly visible, towards the bottom on one side- 'Ete, Ambipom, Cpl. Anna Maeda'.

The Gatekeeper finished reciting a speech he'd had prepared for the occasion, ending on the immortal words, 'Ashes to ashes, dust to dust'. Hilda wiped away a tear as she laid Ete's Pokeball inside a little hole dug into the ground, and the Gatekeeper slowly, solemnly shovelled the soil back in, committing Ete to the earth.

Looker walked towards the grave and the gathered Police, nodding to the Gatekeeper, who shouldered his spade and pick axe and walked off towards the exit, his work done. He stood in silence for a few moments, reflecting on his memories of Anna's Pokemon, Croagunk stoic and solemn on his shoulder, but he had no idea what to say- he'd never been to a funeral before. The sadness and silence filled and overwhelmed the place.

"Ete I am sorry," he said finally, his throat thick with guilt and sorrow. "This is my fault, for redirecting the gun. I am responsible for your death, and it should not have happened." He took a deep breath. "Thank you. Thank you for your work against Team Plasma. Thank you for your service, your kindness, your dedication, your commitment and your determination to overcome the enemy. You went above and beyond what you needed to do, you gave everything, and I have never seen a Pokemon who gave so much to do their duty. We will never forget you, or your sacrifice."

From his coat pocket, Looker pulled a handful of white roses, beautiful flowers that remained in perfect, bright condition. He'd picked them on the way here, from the public garden of Castelia City, and he wished he could have given Ete more, but they would do. Their radiance shone in the darkish Dreamyard, a glimmer of beauty, a spark of hope, and he laid them down by the memorial. "Rest in peace, Ete."

As he stood up, the others murmured 'Rest in peace', an echo of remembrance, and he shuddered, feeling cold as he looked down on the tiny grave, a scene he did not want repeated.

"'Tis a horrible thing tae do, isn't it?"

Hilbert turned slowly to look into the gloom of the corner of the room, where the shadow of the figure of a man was visible, hunched over a grave. "I'm sorry?"

"A funeral. 'Tis a horrible thing tae do. Ai come down here every third Sunday of the month, to pay mai respects for mai Octillery, mai first Pokemon. The first time ai did it, ai hated the feeling, the sadness, but ai'm glad tae come down here now- it helps me remember the great times ai had with mai Pokemon. Ai'll never forget him. Mai memories of him willnae die."

"And neither will ours of Ete," Tash said mournfully. "She was a brilliant Pokemon."

"Aye, and as yer memorial says, she did her duty. She didnae waste her life. And now she lies here, at peace in the Dreamyard, having lived her dreams with all of ye."

There was a pause, as everyone around Ete's grave reflected on the life they'd had with her.

"Yeah," Reece said eventually. "She had a good life." He paused. "I just want this all to end. I can't wait for the day when we finally defeat Team Plasma, for Ete. And I don't know whether this is the Dream Mist, but I can see that day in my head, and I can finally see us winning."

The figure in the shadows paused as it stood up. "Aye, but this Dream Mist, tisnae real. 'Tis just illusions in your head. The dreams we realise with our own abilities are the real dreams."

Tash smiled weakly, having dried her eyes. "That's very poetic and philosophical, Mr..."

"Gorm," Looker said suddenly, having not spoken for the past minute, figuring things out. He turned round. "Sage Alistair Gorm."

There was a chuckle from the shadows as the figure stepped forward, revealing a stout man in a brown business suit, a blue tie round his neck, a blue band around his brown Trilby hat. "Yer clever, laddie. Ye must be Detective Looker. Ai've heard quite a bit about you." He paused. "But what gave me away?"

"The Scottish accent, for one," Looker said, locking eyes with the Sage. "And visiting the grave of a Water-type, the type you master."

"Ai'm impressed," Sage Gorm nodded. "Ai didnae expect ye here, Looker."

"Well, here I am," Looker said wearily, drawing himself up to full height, Croagunk hopping off his shoulder to take a karate pose. "And I don't suppose you're going to come quietly, are you? Without fuss, without a fight?"

"Ye know what, maybe ai might."

Looker was stunned. "What?"

"Ye heard. Ai'm coming quietly." Gorm held out his hand to Looker through the gloom and mist, gesturing as if wanting a handshake. "Ai'm placing myself under yer arrest Looker. Ai willnae fight nae more."

Looker smiled, striding forward, hands delving into his coat pocket for the handcuffs. "A wise choice, Sage Gorm..."

He got no further when a fist lunged at him suddenly from the gloom, striking the side of his head a glancing blow. As Looker reeled, everything became less fuzzy, much clearer, revealing Sage Gorm in a fighting stance, having just punched Looker.

The Scottish Sage laughed. "Hoots mon, ai didnae think ye'd be so stupid! Dream Mist, Detective; what we truly want is only an illusion in here."

Looker shook himself, ridding the Mist from his mind, preparing for the worst. After only 12 hours, he was involved in another Sage brawl, tired, mournful, battered and scarred, not ready for this. "Then we have no choice but to fight..."

Gorm's hand reached for his belt, and the 6 Ultra Balls that held his Pokemon. "Aye! And ai willnae be beaten like my wee friend Ryoku! Ai will win!"

**A/N: So Rood has ulterior motives, more and more Sages are scaring the crap out of Looker by calling him, Gorm has a soft side, and now there's another epic battle on the way! So soon after the last one! :)**

**Next chapter- Gorm vs Looker begins, but what havoc will the Dream Mist cause? Where is that damn Musharna? And what surprise will one team member get? Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it, and a review is always appreciated! Until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	10. Dream Mist

**A/N: Here we are folks! A momentous achievement, double figures... Chapter 10! :D just in time for Christmas too! Call it a present from me :)**

**I'd like to take this chance to thank everybody who has reviewed/favourited this story, along with all those who follow it, and everyone who's read. I hope you've enjoyed it so far, and I hope you will continue to read! :) **

**This chapter will feature the fight against Sage Gorm, Looker's struggle to arrest the crafty, wily Scotsman and take his tally to 3 Sages. But what havoc will Dream Mist cause in the Dreamyard, and which team member will receive a powerful surprise? Let's read to find out, shall we? :) On with the show...**

Fighting Sage Gorm was the last thing Looker wanted on this particular day. Only the night before his team had been involved in a mass brawl with two Sages, and while the Pokemon Centre in Castelia had done a fantastic job fully healing all involved, there was still slight fatigue, slight weariness in the eyes of the Pokemon. They were tired of battling Sages, and the reluctance was clear, as every Pokemon the Police had stood beside Croagunk to face down Gorm. Looker himself needed a rest badly, but Gorm wasn't about to go down without a fight. And Looker wasn't going to let him get away when they'd cornered him at last.

From Matt's files on the Sages, Looker had learnt a fair bit about Gorm. With ties to Clan McCullen Inc, the world's largest weapons manufacturer, Gorm was every bit as powerful in the financial world as the other businessmen Sages. Physically too he himself was powerful- one of the younger Sages, he relished the cold, and had trained himself physically. And as for his Pokemon...

Matt's file said that Gorm was a master of three types- Water, Ice and Flying. But from the Pokemon that emerged from his Pokeballs, the bias towards the Water type was clear; a Cloyster, Walrein, Carracosta, Gyarados, and a Dewgong were the Pokemon who emerged. What was clear though was that these Pokemon were fierce, no matter what type bias Gorm had. And then he released his last Pokemon...

A pink, foggy mist sprayed down from the ceiling, blanketing the floor of the Dreamyard as Gorm's Pokeball revealed a Magikarp, slapping its tail lazily on the floor. "Magi..."

"What the Heck is that?" Hilbert asked, confused as he peered into the mist- the Unovan Trainer had never seen a Magikarp before.

"Hah! Call that a Pokemon worthy of Team Plasma?" Reece said, striding forward to kick the feebly flopping Magikarp. "My nan could beat that one!"

Looker suddenly focused, the pink mist disappearing in his eyes as realisation dawned sickeningly. "Reece, its Dream Mist! Its not a Magikarp!"

"Huh?" Reece turned, confused, and the quick change in position unintentionally saved his life. A shape swirled in the Dream Mist as the Magikarp disappeared, and an Ice Punch flew at Reece from the shadows, striking him on the shoulder rather than the head it was aimed for.

As Reece flew backwards across the Dreamyard to hit the wall with a thump, Gorm's Beartic emerged roaring from the remnants of the Mist. "TIC!"

"Tisnae gonna be easy, Looker!" Gorm called. "Cut through the Dream Mist tae find what's true and what's nae a lie. Ai know how- ai've hidden here for over 4 weeks now. But can ye do it?"

"Oh I can do it," Looker snapped, as a fresh covering of the Mist blew in and surrounded Gorm in a veil of pink fog, darkening a little as it covered the Scotsman. "And you won't beat us, Gorm!"

Looker stalked angrily to the back of the Police to stand beside Matt and Tash, as Croagunk led the Police Pokemon on a charge against Gorm's Pokemon. "Anyone got a plan they want to share with me? Any idea how a bunch of exhausted Policemen can beat this Dream Mist and capture a Sage?"

Tash nodded. "We need to eliminate the Dream Mist. Gorm appears to know how to use the Mist to his advantage, whereas we end up attacking each other and making costly mistakes."

"Right!" Matt said. "We need to focus on what we want, but not make it seem like an ideal situation. Work as hard as possible and fight as hard as we can, and never take it for granted."

Looker clapped his hands. "Okay. What's causing this Dream Mist?"

Tash ducked quickly as a wayward Scald sizzled over her head and impacted against a pillar in a cloud of steam. "Its the Musharna! The one that the experiment used before this place was abandoned. It's hiding somewhere in here and causing chaos."

A plan formed in Looker's head. "I'll go and look for the Musharna, see if I can stop it. You two go and block the exit; for all we know, we may be dreaming that Gorm is still here fighting us." As the duo ran off Looker squinted into the shadows. "Reece!"

"Here!" the young Officer coughed, rising from a pile of rubble at the foot of the pillar, moaning from the pain of his shoulder. "What's up Looker?"

"I need you," Looker said, pulling the staggering Reece to his feet and dusting off his uniform, "to come with me. Back me up- we're going on a Musharna hunt."

Reece nodded, coughing. "Z, Metagross?" His two Pokemon flanked him. "Back us up. If we find Musharna attack on Looker's command, OK?"

As the two Pokemon nodded, Looker looked at Reece properly, registering his state for the first time, and a concerned look appeared on his face. "Reece are you alright? You look hurt... are you sure you want to come with me? Do you just want a little rest?"

"I'm fine!" Reece snarled, pulling himself forward with willpower that would have made Azelf proud. "I'm sure! I want to stop Gorm sir, and that's what matters. I can soldier on!"

Looker shook his head at Reece's determination, amazed by his grit and bravery. "Fine. Come on then."

Looker headed into the thickest part of the fog, where shadows coiled and twisted as the ferocious battle that had erupted between Gorm's Pokemon and the Sages surrounded him. Water dripped from the roof where poorly aimed attacks had struck, and a large puddle was forming, seeping its way into every crack- Reece stumbled at one point on the wetness, and Looker had to help him back up, bearing the weight of his struggling team member.

A loud, pained roar reverberated through the Dreamyard, and Looker rolled to one side just in the nick of time. Descending through the Mist, Gorm's Gyarados fell slowly, toppling with a heavy might to shake the very ground as it impacted hard; electricity from an Electroweb attack from Tula, Hilbert's Galvantula, rippled through its body as it was knocked out. Looker had to push Reece to one side as Gyarados' gaping jaws closed instantly when it became unconscious, otherwise Reece would have been crunched by some serious fangs.

Hilbert wasn't having it all his way though, and the next casualty surprised Looker. Reshiram had fallen: as Gorm's Pokemon considered it the Police's main threat, all of them had targeted the Legendary with blasts of water that threatened to put out the blazing fire in its turbine tail. Reshiram may have been part-Dragon, and therefore less weak to the effects of Water, but under pressure from so much water it could rehydrate the Unovan Desert, the Dragon of Truth nearly drowned, and collapsed to the floor elegantly, its white mane billowing gracefully and piling up in a heap behind the Dragon.

"Shit..." Reece said, pausing for breath as he watched Reshiram fall. "Gorm is POWERFUL! None of the other Sages managed that..."

"Are you sure that's not Gorm manipulating the Dream Mist, dreaming of knocking out Reshiram and this creating an illusion?"

"No chance. He knows this Mist inside out, what's a lie and what's not. He really has knocked out Reshiram." Reece turned to face Looker. "We need to take this son of a bitch out."

"I know..." Looker grinned suddenly. "And we can do it at last! We can stop the Dream Mist! Musharna!"

Looker had managed to get through the thickest fog to the centre of it all, to the cause of the Dream Mist spreading through the Dreamyard. Rolled up into a ball like a foetus, a slightly chubby, pink and purple, pig-like Pokemon snored adorably, its long pink snout rippling as it breathed out. On its forehead, there was something almost like a blowhole on a Wailord, where Dream Mist trickled and poured out in great quantities, pink smoke rising and covering the area in a pink hue. This was the creator of Dream Mist, the inhabitant of the Dreamyard: Musharna.

"How do we get it to wake up?" Reece hissed, before he swallowed a mouthful of dust and coughed, a hacking, loud cough, clearing his throat. The sudden noise awoke the Drowsing Pokemon from its slumber, blinking sleep out of red eyes at the two Policemen.

Looker smiled. "That seemed to do the trick." He started slowly walking forward towards Musharna. "Musharna we need your help..."

BAM! The Mist suddenly coiled and sprung up around Looker and Musharna, as Reece realised it wasn't coming from the Musharna in front of them. "Looker!"

Through the fog a fist sailed once more to punch Looker with the force of a Machop, sending him reeling into a pillar. Sage Gorm chuckled as he stepped forward over the Detective. "Mistake me for something else Looker? Deary me, this Dream Mist, 'tis a nightmare tae deal with."

"Musha?" From around the corner, where the Dream Mist was really coming from, the real Musharna tottered, blinking its red eyes at the scene in front of it. Then it growled in recognition of humans- it had a real problem with them, ever since they'd tried to experiment on it in the Dreamyard.

"Oh, you shouldnae mind me, Musharna," Gorm said cheerily, picking Looker up by the collar and hitting him again, the fog around him darkening, tainted by negativity. "Just dealing with some intruders for ye."

"Intruders?" Reece yelled. "We're looking for you, old man!"

"Yeah!" came a voice from behind Musharna, and the Drowsing Pokemon span to see Hilda standing behind it, eyes blazing furiously, her Serperior Amanda at her side. "This old man is a criminal, and is trespassing here!"

Looker nodded through the pain, noting how the Mist around Musharna was darkening, and grabbed onto Gorm to prevent him escaping. "Musharna, he's been hiding in here without permission for over 4 weeks now, and he's committed terrible crimes. He tried to take over Unova!"

"Get off me!" Gorm cried, as his Pokemon started grouping around the struggling Sage and Detective, Musharna's rage growing. "'Tis all a lie, Musharna!"

"Musharna?" Hilda called, and Musharna looked up at her. "Do you know what the worst thing he did was?" Musharna shook its head. "He ordered those Grunts to come here to collect Dream Mist. Remember? The ones who kicked and abused your child Munna? The ones we fought to defeat?"

Looker smiled admiringly at Hilda- that was a stroke of genius to change Musharna's side, and now Musharna was VERY angry at Gorm, the Dream Mist billowing, becoming inky and shadowy as the Drowsing Pokemon snapped. He threw Gorm to the floor. "Its Nightmare Mist now! Corrupt, evil tainted! Get down!"

Musharna rose, uncurling from its ball to scream in fury at the Sage, fearsomely glaring at him, and Gorm realised what was going to happen. "Oh shite..."

The shadowy fog coiled and whipped up into a frenzy, before a wave of pure negative energy blasted forward, intent on demolishing Gorm and his Pokemon. Turned by the anger at Gorm into something truly terrifying, the Mist slammed into his Pokemon with horrible force, a hellish force beyond any understanding. Gorm's Beartic tried to claw at the attacking fog, but it whipped around the Ice-type, throwing it off its feet and driving it into a concrete wall with bone-cracking force. It wasn't just Beartic who was taken out by the powerful blast of energy- Gorm's Carracosta's shell was obliterated, fragments driving into the flesh of the Prototurtle, making it scream in mortal pain. His Dewgong EVAPORATED. And then it stopped...

Somehow unharmed in his position on the floor, Looker stopped shielding his eyes with his forearm to glance up, checking what had stopped the negative energy. He rose slowly, unsteadily, taking in the damage, before watching Gorm kick Musharna across the Dreamyard into a pillar, knocking it out. "Hey!"

"Take that, ye bastard," the Scotsman muttered, kicking Musharna again. "That'll teach ye. We shouldnae have been merciful tae ye the last time we came here..."

"It's over Gorm," Hilbert said, approaching slowly as the pink fog completely disappeared, revealing the cold hard light of day streaming in from above. "You've lost."

Gorm grinned. "Oh, have ai? Take a look around ye! Where are yer Pokemon?"

"Oh shit, he's right," moaned Tash as she looked around- while Gorm's Pokemon had been caught up in the blast of Nightmare Mist, so had the Police Pokemon. They all lay unconscious on the floor, and now, with their Pokemon down (albeit in better condition than Gorm's), there was no way they could force him to go quietly.

Gorm grinned to confirm this, as he drew two Pokeballs from his belt, releasing his Cloyster and Walrein. "Ai returned these fellas earlier, just in case. Now how are ye gonna arrest me? Ai've won, Looker!"

Looker opened his mouth to make a witty retort, while his fingers inched towards the Colt pistol given to him by Reece- he hated gun persuasion, but he had to get Gorm. He was interrupted though when a blur dropped from the rafters to land defiantly in front of Cloyster and Walrein. "Croa GUNK!"

"Ha!" Gorm barked, as Croagunk, having survived the Nightmare Mist, stared down his Pokemon. "One wee little Croagunk against my best Pokemon. Nice try, Looker! Walrein, annihilate him!"

Before the Walrein could move though Croagunk started to glow in a bright white light, his shape fading from view to become a shadow which started to change in form...

"What?" Gorm cried, confused. "What?"

"Evolution," Hilbert said, grinning. "We might have a chance now. Go Croagunk!"

Looker shook his head as the shape started to grow in size, the arms lengthening, the head of his partner in crime (investigation) morphing slowly. This wasn't right...

Ever since Team Galactic, ever since taking on Commander Saturn and his Toxicroak, ever since being beaten the first time, Croagunk had developed a hatred of his evolutionary superiors, considering them all evil, conniving bastards. He'd finally beaten Toxicroak, ending the vendetta, but his hatred still burned, and he always insisted that Looker carried an Everstone around for him. Why would he sacrifice his form to help Looker beat one Sage? He wouldn't do that in a million years... "Croagunk... buddy..."

The shape glowed brighter, the intensity of the evolutionary light growing, a miniature sun in the gloom of the Dreamyard, as it flashed one more time, the form of the Toxicroak inside starting to solidify...

A fist slammed down on the floor, and the shape managed to shrink in the blink of an eye back to the original form, the light glowing around it. "CROA... GUNKKKKK!"

Croagunk had managed to stop his own evolution at the last possible moment, reverting back to his favoured form, but now the raw evolutionary energy, left over and with no outlet to pour itself into, was set loose. With a colossal boom, it shot forward away from Croagunk, rippling, white light surging forward, boiling through the air towards Gorm's Pokemon. Croagunk had improvised the most powerful attack he could use- evolution- and now Gorm's Pokemon would feel the full force of the energy...

Looker closed his eyes as light danced across his eyelids from the explosion that followed, somehow burning his eyes despite them being closed. With a ringing in his ears, the light subsided, the shadowy gloom of the Dreamyard returning, and Looker opened his eyes at last. "What the Hell..."

Croagunk, sizzling slightly, turned to face his master, and saluted properly for the first time in several years, before toppling over backwards, knocked out from the sheer recoil of the attack he'd just launched. Gorm's Pokemon faired worse though- the attack had burned black marks into the concrete behind them, and Gorm's Walrein's skin had been seared, crisped to a black by the ferocious energy wave, the pain overwhelming the Pokemon but not killing it, just KOing it. His Cloyster's normally impenetrable shell had been burned through, a beam of energy piercing through, lancing through, skewering the inside creature with light- all that remained of where the Cloyster's face should have been was a gaping hole.

Gorm rose, hacking and coughing, from the floor he'd thrown himself onto, his moustache and hair singed, loose ends sticking out underneath the skeleton of his hat. He dusted some soot off his shoulders and beat out a few small fires in his suit. "Hoots mon that was terrifying..."

Looker hauled the Sage up to his feet, pressing the Colt he now held into the Scotsman's stomach, grinning triumphantly at finally beating the Sage. "Tash, Hilda, someone, please go and pick Croagunk up. Be careful, he might be a bit hot." He then turned and with his free hand punched Gorm in the face as hard as he possibly could. "That's from Croagunk, Musharna, Reshiram, everyone else on the team, and me."

Gorm moaned, trying to stem the flow of blood from his nose as best as he could when he was being held at gunpoint. "I lost... How did... I lost..."

"No," Looker said, "I won, and you're under arrest." He pressed the barrel of the Colt harder into the Sage's stomach, making him gasp. "Now are you going to come quietly?"

**A/N: Woo, three Sages down! Looker is on a roll! :D and Croagunk nearly evolved! That's a new way to win a Pokemon battle :)**

**Next chapter- will Gorm crack under pressure in the interview room? What will the cameo character think? And... what dirty secret is the Commissioner hiding?! :O coming soon...**

**Merry Christmas to you all! :D thanks for reading, a review is always appreciated, and until next time (hopefully before New Year), adios amigos! :D **

**Sharkness**


	11. The Paperweight

**A/N: I'm back folks! Chapter 11 of the Chase is here! :D I'm very sorry about the wait for it, family meetings over Christmas kind of derailed my attempts to write something. Who cares, I'm back now! :)**

**Last chapter featured the climax of the epic battle with Sage Gorm, and marked the occasion of the capture of Looker's third Sage. However, now they have to get Gorm to talk, which will prove difficult, not least when there are other shady occurrences in HQ... Mwahaha... On with the show...**

Morning of a cool day brought a still sky to Castelia City for the first time in a week, a beautiful, tranquil sea of light blue above the metropolis. The last remnants of the stunning storm that had ravaged Unova, the storm that had emptied the heavens onto the region, had gone. It had been an almighty deluge that flooded ground and turned the grassy routes into swamps- the Moor of Icirrus had become an inland sea, and the Desert Resort had received its first rain in over a hundred years, the oases finally wet again, plants finally starting to flourish on their banks.

Looker sat with a mug of his special coffee in one hand, watching out into the drenched city from the downstairs section of Police HQ. At eye level with the roads, he could see how much the storm had done- Castelia Sewers, normally unnoticed, were flooding into the streets. Looker spotted a volunteer street cleaner, a Janitor from the Game Freak building in the city, who was busy trying to use a broom to sweep a puddle back into the sea, pushing a wall of water akin to a tsunami back down the drains.

"Well, the sports fans aren't going to be very happy," Reece remarked, watching out of the window.

Croagunk turned on Looker's shoulder, looking a little confused. "Croa?"

Reece waved a hand. "All that water out there will have flooded the pitch in Big Stadium, up in Nimbasa. Its the big game today, Nimbasa versus Castelia, and they were expecting big crowds- they won't be able to play football in a swamp." He paused. "I had a big bet on Castelia too..."

"Soccer, or American football?" Looker asked. "If its soccer, I'm a Sunyshore Lights fan."

Reece's eyes flashed red in anger briefly. "Its not soccer! God dammit, its football! And you don't even support a decent team.." He was grinning at that bit though. "And its neither- in Unova, its Baccer. You know, teams of Pokemon battling against each other to hit a spinning-top ball into a pyramid goal?"

"I know what Baccer is," Looker said patiently. "I support the Jubilife Reds." Then he paused, before Reece could start any Baccer banter. "Reece, people were flooded out of their homes, and we're talking about the Baccer being cancelled. Not exactly the biggest problem ever..."

"Shut up!" Reece said jokily, grinning, eyes flickering orange. "Shouldn't you be working?"

"I am," Looker said, smiling briefly. "I'm waiting."

The Police were finally relaxing ever just a little bit. After defeating Sage Gorm the day before, they had managed to tie up a few loose ends with the investigation into Team Plasma. While Bastian interrogated Gorm that night, Looker had checked through records, sorted evidence, got Matt working on computers looking for more leads to more Sages, and got every Police Pokemon healed at the Pokemon Centre.

He HAD intended to get a search warrant for a Clan McCullen Inc warehouse (Gorm's company) to see if he was stockpiling weapons for Plasma, but he wasn't able to find this warehouse, and Aurelius had told him it was not worth the hassle, that Gorm's company's lawyers would be hard to break, and that he should focus on the main investigation. Which he was doing...

The door to the interview room slid open a crack, and Hilbert popped his head around it. "He's in here now. And ready for you."

Looker nodded, rising, beckoning to Reece as he walked in, nodding to Tash, who was sat in the corner of the room, and then turning to face the other occupant. "Good morning, Sage Gorm. No please, don't stand."

The Scotsman, who'd made no attempt to rise at all while sat at the table in handcuffs, glowered at Looker. "That bastard Bastian didnae let me sleep! Ai've never been treated like that before- just endless questions!"

"That bastard is my interrogation officer," Looker said cooly. "His job is to ASK questions, and get answers. And I have a few of my own. Starting with this."

On Looker's nod, Croagunk hopped off his shoulder and placed down a single Pokeball on the table, in front of Gorm's handcuffed hands. "Gunk!"

"Ai was wondering where ye'd put that," Gorm muttered.

"Yes, the locked Pokeball," Looker mused. "Submitted into evidence along with the rest of your Pokemon, well, those who survived, plus a rather large stun grenade, a Beretta, and your other personal effects." He prodded the locked Pokeball. "Zinzolin and Ryoku had one like this. What is the meaning of it? What's in it?"

"None of yer business," Gorm said smugly. "And ai've heard of yer wee Croagunk's intimidation tactic. Ai'm not telling ye, even if he bangs the table."

Croagunk, fist raised, lowered it slowly, glaring at Gorm.

Tash tutted, and tossed the locked Pokeball to Reece, who dropped it with a clang, then picked it up sheepishly. "Reece, return that with the others in evidence, will you? Gorm, anything else you want to say? You've been more cooperative than the other Sages with describing your past..."

"Aye. Ye know then that ai am considering Rood's proposal tae overthrow Ghetsis. 'Tis a tempting prospect, for 'harmony', especially considering my relationship with Ghetsis, tisnae the best. He's not my favourite guy."

"So Rood wasn't actually lying?" Looker asked, as Reece edged his way out of the room, embarrassed. Looker was interested- half of Team Plasma seemed to have its own hidden agenda.

"Nae. Although, ai must say, ai'm surprised he phoned ye and told ye about it. He's normally very secretive, good at hiding."

"On that subject, you could be quite helpful," came a voice from the door. The Police all turned to see Hilda framed in the doorway, casually juggling a Pokeball. "Where are your other Sages hiding?"

Gorm shrugged. "Ai wouldnae tell ye if I knew. Ai think ai can roughly guess, but yer still not getting that."

"You Sages really are very unhelpful," Hilbert complained. "We caught you, you could at least admit defeat and cooperate."

"Ah, but they aren't defeated, are they?" Looker smiled. "Because they have the Plan, and are apparently ready to commence 'Stage 2'."

Gorm looked very surprised. "Ye know about the Plan?"

Bingo, thought Looker. Now's my chance... "Yes, we know. We caught Zinzolin out talking about it."

"He never was good at keeping secrets," Gorm said, shaking his head.

"Come clean Gorm," Tash urged. "We know everything about it, what you plan to do. You can't hide anything from us." There was silence in the room...

Then Gorm grinned an almighty grin, and started bellowing in laughter. "Aha! Ahaha! Hahahahaha!"

"What?" Tash asked, but her face of no knowledge was slipping, her carefully painted mask of innocence failing- her eyes were worried. "What's so funny Gorm?"

Gorm wiped away a tear, still grinning. "Oh ye make me laugh! Zinzolin isnae a fool- he may give away that we have a Plan, but he wouldnae discuss any details of it with anyone, considering all of us Sages know the Plan, and that's what's important."

"He was talking with Ryoku about it," Hilda said desperately.

"Hoots mon, do ye think two of us would idly chat about a masterplan when enemies could be in earshot, when we know what it is? Ai didnae think so too!"

Looker sighed as Reece returned. "Put him back in the cells. Nice try Tash." He turned to Gorm. "Oh, and when you're there, could you ask Ghetsis whether he thinks three Sages in three days is a decent statistic."

Gorm allowed himself to be pulled up, his smirk still wide as Reece led him towards the exit. "Ai'm sure he'll like it. Ye funny man... Ai never even thought for one second that ye knew anything about our wee little Plan. Ye didnae fool me."

"Oh really?" Looker asked, curious.

"Yes! For two reasons. One, if ye knew what we were planning, ye wouldnae have wasted yer time and Bastian's night with incessant questioning, even when my answers didnae change." Gorm's grin suddenly grew wider. "And two, if ye knew what we were planning, ye wouldnae be hanging around us anymore, or keeping us close. Good day, Looker."

As Gorm was hauled out of the room laughing, Hilbert shivered. "Jeez, what is it with Team Plasma leaders? All of them are creepy old men with horrible plans..."

Looker sighed, exasperated, but he was also hiding worry, worry of what Gorm's ominous warning meant. "We never get anything of interest out of these interviews. We try all night long questioning, and it still doesn't work.."

"Bastian said to me he doesn't want to give up, Looker," Hilda said. "He reckons they're close to cracking."

"I reckoned that too," Tash said. "And then Gorm beat me at my own mind games. He is cunning..."

"Croa," Croagunk nodded, before he hopped off Looker's shoulder, and out of Looker's jacket he pulled out two tickets, one of them clearly marked out with the name 'Reece Davis'. "Gunk gunk!"

Looker worked it out quickly, and laughed. "Ha! Nice try, but you and Reece aren't going to the Baccer, even if he has made a bet."

"Croa..."

"Look, it'll probably be cancelled anyway, because of the pitch. And you have work to do anyway." Croagunk fumed, and stomped off to stand by Hilda. "Right, all of you, get to work! I'm sure you've got something to do!"

Hilbert raised a hand. "Looker, Hilda and I have a meeting to attend with someone who may be interested in briefly helping our cause. May we?"

"Of course." Looker grinned. "Take Croagunk. He needs the fresh air. And what about you Tash?"

"I've got some paperwork to do, stuff to tidy up," she replied. "Bastian's busy negotiating with some lawyers for Gorm's company..."

"Does that man never sleep?" Looker asked, stunned- even he felt tired on this investigation, even with his energising Victreebel-sap-laced coffee, even with SOME sleep. "He was up all night questioning!"

Tash simply nodded. "Reece will be helping Matt with data capture..." She paused. "Wanna come with me? Sort some paperwork out? Grab a coffee or something in Cafe Sonata?"

Looker smiled. "You're on." He nodded to Sergeant Forsyth on the front desk, who pulled out Looker's suitcase of disguises from under the desk and handed it to Looker. "I have some of the interview transcripts from before I arrived in here. I can have a look through and see what I can find. We'll be back later, Forsyth."

With that Looker and Tash strode out of the door, heading against the flow of Castelia citizens caught in rush hour towards Cafe Sonata. Paperwork was the least exciting prospect of Police work, far less glamorous than high-speed pursuits and scuffles with Sages, but it needed to be done, and if Looker was going to do it, he was going to get some sense from chaos. And he was going to at least have a drink and a cake while he did it...

**(***)**

Unfortunately though for Looker the pile of papers yielded nothing. Through all those interviews, written down in Bastian's scrawl (which proved the most difficult puzzle of the day), Looker had found absolutely nothing in the written transcripts, and it absolutely infuriated him. Had he been at the top of his game, like on the Galactic case, he would no doubt have found something in Ghetsis' words that alluded to the Sages' Plan, some little tiny clue that would otherwise pass as an insignificant bit of conversation. It would have been helpful to have audio or video recordings of each interview, to listen for catches in voices, little hints of emotions, but Aurelius had already told him that there was no recorder in that room- Looker had to go on what Bastian had written down, and that alone, and it wasn't working.

"Never mind Looker," Tash said, patting him on the back as they returned to Police HQ, coffee cups in hand, a box of donuts safely stored in Looker's case (what kind of Policeman would he be without donuts?). Tash had distracted him a little while he searched, as they'd had quite a long chat about her relationship with Matt, but she'd also helped try to search, and she could see why Looker was frustrated. "We'll find something soon."

Looker sighed. "I hope so. Bastian could at least have written down any suspicious tones of voice he heard, so I had something to go on."

"He probably did. We just can't read his writing."

Looker smiled. "Anyone who can deserves to replace Aurelius as Commissioner."

Their laughter was cut short as a figure appeared, running through the automatic doors and coming to a panting stop in front of them. "Looker," it wheezed. "Looker..."

"Sergeant Forsyth?" Tash asked, recognising the croaky, rasping voice. "What the Hell's wrong with you..."

"What's happened Forsyth?" Looker asked, with a little more intuition and tact.

Forsyth gulped, swallowing heavily. "The Commissioner... Come quick... Follow me!"

Looker nodded to Tash, a fleeting look of concern passing over her face, as they followed the hurrying desk sergeant inside. Forsyth normally walked with the aid of a cane, but ran unaided with a swaying gait that looked only a touch brittle, and despite his appearance he was deceptively quick. Rather than climb the long flights of stairs, Forsyth made them wait for the notoriously slow elevator (to save his hip, he said) and when in a hurry, the light jingle of elevator music was not helpful. Looker was worrying...

The doors pinged open, sliding back smoothly, but Looker barged in through them as they were semi-open, making them rattle as he took in the scene. "Alright, what's going on here?"

Everybody on the team was up in the Commissioner's office, grouped around the desk where Aurelius worked; even Hilbert and Hilda had returned, although they looked confused. They'd came back along with Croagunk, whose fist was slammed into the desk in typical intimidating fashion. Aurelius, remaining sat down, had backed his chair against the window which he normally watched the city from, and the slightest look of fear was on the fat man's face. Bastian looked furious, and Reece was angry, his eyes ablaze red, but Matt looked thoughtful.

"Hi Looker," Bastian said, turning to look at the arrived Detective. "Tash too... Good! You can look at this then!"

"This?" Tash asked, confused. "What's going on?"

Forsyth hobbled to the desk, his pained walk returning. He picked up something from the desk and threw it lightly through the air to Looker, who caught it. "Somebody's been hiding a secret from all of us."

Looker turned over the object in his hand. It was quite clear it was a glass paperweight, a flat dome shape, and through the clear glass on the base of the dome a picture was visible- a black and white shield with a blue 'P' on it. Turning it over, Looker read a thin image, engraved very lightly on the bottom: 'For your services to the cause of harmony, Thomas Aurelius'.

Finally he looked up. "Explain."

"This is preposterous!" Aurelius exploded suddenly, rising up out of his chair like a Wailord beaching itself. "Completely insane, an outrage! That is not mine, and I have never seen it before, and I have NEVER been treated like this by an Officer!"

Reece held up a hand. "Looker, when Bastian finished in his meeting with the lawyers of Gorm's company, he went to the evidence locker to meet me, to sort things out from earlier. However, we were missing the locked Pokeball Zinzolin came in with. Then I remembered the Commissioner showing it to us in his office."

"As I was closest to the Commissioner's office," Matt cut in, "Reece asked me to go up to the office and look for the Pokeball so it could be returned to evidence. So I went."

"And where were you, sir?" Tash asked the Commissioner politely.

"Castelia Pokemon Centre. Room 12A, to be precise. My mother is in for an operation on her liver, so I was out visiting all morning. And you can check that with the hospital too, if you don't believe me."

"So the office was empty," Looker said, ignoring Aurelius. "And you went in there to look Matt..."

"Yes Looker. That desk has a lot of drawers, so I checked a lot of them, and eventually found it amongst all the other paperwork and nick-nacks. Then when I stood up, I looked at a photo of the Commissioner on his day of promotion, which was on the desk surface. Below that, was that paperweight.."

"Evidence of his allegiance with Team Plasma," Bastian finished, almost snarling at the Commissioner, who glared back.

"Ridiculous," Aurelius replied aggressively. "If I did indeed possess such incriminating evidence, it would not rest on my desk surface in plain sight, while we investigated Team Plasma!"

"I think we need to check the other drawers then, see what else he has in the way of incriminating evidence," Reece said, edging forward, Croagunk puffing up his cheek sacs to intimidate Aurelius further.

Hilda pulled him back gently. "No, not yet. I think we should let Looker decide what to do. Looker?"

Looker nodded, silent for a few seconds. Then he spoke quietly. "Let him go."

The room erupted. "Croa GUNK CROA?!" Croagunk yelled angrily, a mixture of fury and confusion on his face, and Bastian looked enraged too. The Commissioner looked relieved.

Tash nudged Looker in the ribs. "Looker? What is it? What've you spotted?" Wordlessly, Looker held up the Plasma paperweight to her eye level. "Yeah? And?" Then it hit her. "Ohh..."

"Uh-huh," Looker nodded. "Hilbert, look at this. Hilda, look at it. Now do you see?"

Craning their necks, the teens got it at roughly the same point. "Ah-ha! Okay!"

"Wait, Looker, tell us, what is it?" Reece asked.

Looker smiled humourlessly. "When looked at, the Team Plasma crest goes from left to right, white to black on the shield. This crest goes from left to right, black to white." He paused. "Don't you see? Its a fake."

"Ohh..." came the echo around the room, and Croagunk and Bastian looked very sheepish.

Looker nodded. "Sorry sir about my team's reaction. They had every right to get wound up, but this is a fraud. Somebody who has access to your office placed this paperweight, planted it on your desk to make us suspicious of you, to make you appear a villain, perhaps to make you leave. But they failed, with a shoddy job." He turned to face everyone. "Bad news then. There is a traitor in the Police."

This had the typical Police reaction, the reaction Looker expected- the surprised and shocked gasp filled the room, and was followed by the typical round of pointing, where everyone's hands whipped up and pointed accusingly at someone else in the room, so that nobody was left unaccused.

"A traitor... My God, that's horrible," Hilda said. "Who could it be?"

"Well, I trust all of you. I don't think its any of us, more likely another staff member" Looker announced to the room. This was a complete lie though- Looker had narrowed it down to 3 suspects, reading for telltale signs and using what he already knew. He was adamant that somebody in the room had betrayed them for Team Plasma.

Aurelius stood up, shaking his head. "This calls for more action. I'll recall some of the Policemen from Sinnoh, get them off their search for N and get them back home. It'll be difficult- Captain Ambrose, in charge of that investigation, doesn't want to lose any men- but we need the men. They can investigate into this."

Looker nodded. "Right, let's get fingerprint checks run on that paperweight, and I want that desk swabbed for any DNA evidence, hairs, skin cells, et cetera, et cetera. Keep an eye out for any suspicious behaviour in the ranks gang; anything that draws your attention, anything the least bit weird, report it to me. But DO NOT let this become your main focus. There are still three Sages out there on the loose, including the most powerful battler, the most powerful businessman and the most powerful in the hierarchy. They are POWERFUL opponents. And we need to catch them as soon as possible." He clapped his hands. "Well, what are we all standing around for? Let's get back to work!"

With some murmurings between people, the Police trickled out of the Commissioner's office slowly, the slow-as-hell lift making them wait uncomfortably and awkwardly in the office before they could get back to work. Looker smiled though when he saw Bastian and Reece go up to Aurelius and shake hands with him sheepishly by way of apology; he was glad that Aurelius had forgiven them for being reckless.

When the lift doors finally closed and Looker was left alone in the office with Aurelius, he strode up behind the Commissioner's chair, standing behind Aurelius' back as he looked out over the city. "I'm sorry about them sir."

Aurelius waved a hand dismissively. "Its fine Looker. I'd be angry like that if it was your desk we found the paperweight in."

Looker nodded. "Even so, it was unacceptable. Their actions were reckless." He sighed. "And now, not only do we have to catch the three most powerful Sages, we have to find the traitor in our ranks too, and prevent them from causing undue harm."

"Do not worry about it Looker. When the Officers return from Sinnoh, I'll get them investigating into it, and personally lead the hunt myself. You stick to what you do best: bringing in the Sages." Aurelius paused. "I take it you have an inkling as to who the traitor might be?"

"I have three suspects in mind," Looker confirmed, not directly naming them. "You're right though sir. I'll leave it up to you."

Aurelius smiled. "Okay then. I think your team are waiting for you downstairs in your team meeting room- I think they'll need some advice. I won't take any more of your time up now, not when you can be chasing down Sages and securing justice in Unova. You're free to go..." He looked up. "Unless there's anything else I can assist you with, of course..."

Looker thought for a moment, then grinned. "There is one thing I want to ask sir."

"Certainly!"

Looker strode over to his case of wonders, opened it up and, still grinning, placed the box of donuts down on Aurelius' desk, noticing the Commissioner's face light up with glee. "Care for a donut, sir? I recommend the ones with the chocolate glazing, they are divine..."

**A/N: Ah, don't you just love a nice, delicious Krispy Kreme donut? :D but the delectable taste is soured by the knowledge that there's a traitor in the ranks. Who could it be I wonder?**

**Next chapter- An old face returns, a new face is shown to the team, a familiar face wants to lend a hand, and Looker gets his disguises out again... for another Sage! Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading this, my first update of 2013! A review is always appreciated, and until next time, cheerio! :D**

**Sharkness**


	12. Shadow

**A/N: I'm back! And here is Chapter 12! :D**

**Plenty of theories flying around as to who the traitor is in the Police department! I'm impressed! I've had guesses by PM, by guest review and by review, and I'll admit that one of you could be right. But I'll also admit now, that it isn't Croagunk :L**

**First of all I want to apologise. Last chapter I said that this chapter would contain another Sage, and Looker starting to battle them, but then I came up with this extra plot twist, so I'm going ahead with it! The Sage will still appear, as will a famous character, and another character will return, AND a new character arrives! What fun! On with the show...**

The sun rose, slowly, over Castelia City, heralding the start of a brand new day, but today was different to other days. There was a reddish tint to the sunrise, and beams of the dawn light stained the few clouds in the sky a blood-red as it seeped through. It was calm and quiet, barely a ripple on the surface of the water in the harbour, and there was almost an eerie stillness to the place. No wind blew, no rain poured, no stifling heat or bitter cold blasted through the streets; there was just the beautiful light, waves of it piling up against the skyscrapers slowly, crashing down eventually on the other side like a creeping avalanche, filling almost every corner, vanquishing the darkness, the shadows. The metal and glass hive of human activity that was Castelia shone and gleamed, as it woke up to another wonderful morning.

The people in the city had become like the very rays of light that had awoken them; slow. Castelia was renowned for its frenetic atmosphere, its rush hour chaos, and had the reputation of being 'The City that Never Slept', yet this morning there wasn't traffic havoc on the streets. This morning the wide avenues were practically deserted, most of the city remaining asleep, the people who did venture out into the metropolis shuffling, bleary-eyed, to their work. It was just one of those days- a lazy day.

Looker appreciated the peace as he walked to the Police HQ to start work, Croagunk in tow, his suitcase of kit rattling along behind him. On the way home the night before he'd nearly lost the case in the crush of bodies, and the last thing he needed on his way to work, still half-buried in a land of dreams and slumber, was the worry of being caught in the seething maelstrom of humans and Pokemon. Commissioner Aurelius enjoyed people watching from his office, and said rush hour looked like watching a swarm of Durant below his feet- Looker agreed with the analogy, in that a Durant swarm was usually very vicious, and so was the mob.

He reached the automatic doors of the HQ and slipped through, nodding to Forsyth; Castelia was so quiet that Looker heard the faint hiss as the doors glided open for the first time. Climbing the stairs, avoiding taking the drearily slow lift, he thought about Aurelius, and reflected on the day before. It really was worrying that there was a rat in the Police, a traitor who placed fake Team Plasma memorabilia in Aurelius' office to attempt to turn the Police against him, and make Looker suspicious. It had made him suspicious, and today, he would start to try to solve things, to see if his suspicions were correct.

"Hmm..." he murmured to himself, then he turned his head to his partner. "Croagunk, buddy, think you know who placed the paperweight? See anything on anyone's faces when we were in there that gave it away?"

Croagunk paused in thought, a long blue forearm resting against his face, his cheek sacs slowly deflating. "Croa..."

Looker nodded- Croagunk was expert at reading people, and would have noticed the tiniest flicker of worry. Even those who tried to mask emotions could be spotted by Croagunk. Yet it appeared he had failed...

But then Croagunk stirred again. "Gunk gunk!"

"Really? You did?"

Croagunk held up three digits, and Looker sighed. His partner had narrowed it down to the same people as him then.

"I guess it's best to leave it to the Officer arriving today then," he said to Croagunk. "We can concentrate on the Sages, and keep an ear out for any developments they may have."

"Gunk." Croagunk nodded firmly, before they entered the meeting room to be greeted by the sight of the entire team, assembled ready and fit for duty before him. After Paperweightgate the day before, Looker had had a long talk with them all, to warn those who'd been too anti-Aurelius, and to ensure they knew the plan of action on the Sages situation. It was good to see they'd all listened.

"Morning all," Looker said to the room, sliding into a swivel chair while taking a donut from a plate in the middle of the meeting table, a remnant of yesterday's box. "Good to see you've all taken my advice on board. Now, what did we learn yesterday? About the Sages? Matt, brief me..."

Matt nodded in reply. "Well, after three arrests in three days, it seems the success is going. The trail on Giallo that I had assembled has gone cold, and Bronius also appears not to be visible. Rood though is proving the trickiest- he looks so much like any other old man, it's difficult to define which old man the system spots is him. For example, at around 19:00 yesterday 'Rood' was spotted at Twist Mountain, the Skyarrow Bridge, Anville Town, Gear Station in Nimbasa, and Victory Road."

"Even then, those sightings weren't perfect matches to him," Bastian added. "At best, facial recognition software registered a 70% match."

"This is what you get when you look like everyone else," Hilbert said. "Nobody can find you, see you, trace you or detect you. It's like he's become a ghost..."

"A ghost who knows we can't find him because of his lack of individuality," Matt said.

"He's going to be tricky," Looker announced. "He's trying to play with us, to make us scramble, to get us to make mistakes. Don't rise to it. Go after the other two, Bronius and Giallo, and let Rood make mistakes, let him expose himself."

"We thought that," Tash agreed. "And then Hilda came up with a great plan to track down Bronius."

"You did?" Looker asked, and Hilda nodded, smiling. "I'm all ears..."

She cleared her throat gently. "Well, you know how Bronius runs a huge business empire? Like, digger companies, mining equipment, mining contracts?"

"Yes?"

"He's remained in charge even despite Team Plasma, despite being on the run. So why don't we call up his company, pretending to be buyers interested in a lot of stock? Ask the company to forward us to Bronius, and then when he answers, we can trace his phone signal."

Looker grinned. "Excellent plan! Nice work Hilda!" As Hilda blushed slightly, Looker clapped, and turned to face everyone. "Well then, it's time to place a phone call! Let's get wired up and ready..."

"Hang on a minute Looker!" Reece called.

Looker smiled at him. "Yes Reece?"

The youngster simply nodded his head in the direction of the room's door. "I think the Commissioner wants to have a word with us..."

Sure enough, with a loud creak as the floor bent to support his weight, Aurelius tramped his way through the door into the room, nodding at the team, Forsyth hobbling along in tow. Looker noticed with little surprise that the Commissioner needed a walking stick to support his girth as he moved, and noted with even less surprise how Bastian wrenched a grin onto his face, how Reece's smile became nervous and tautened- there was obviously still tension after Paperweightgate.

Aurelius' small eyes darted from face to face. "Morning all. Plan sorted for today then, I hear?"

"Good morning sir," Looker said politely. "Not like you to come down to our morning meeting..."

"Well, I heard there were donuts left over," the Commissioner answered, taking the last one. "And on a more serious note, I wish to talk to you all about some new faces."

Tash arched an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? The detective from Sinnoh arrived then?"

"I've been here for the past week," Looker joked, to a ripple of laughter.

Aurelius' face didn't twitch. "Yes, he's here. And I think he wants to meet you all. Detective Stamp?"

From around the corner, a man stuck his head in through the doorway of the team's office, before coming through to stand by Looker's chair. He was quite slim, with delicate-looking hands, and tall, at least three inches higher than Looker. In fact, with a sharp black suit and a very pale face, he looked not too dissimilar from the mythical Slenderman, albeit with dark green, large eyes, a slightly fuller face and black hair, trimmed short at the sides.

"I'm Danny Stamp," he said to Looker with a smile, offering his hand in what turned out to be a firm handshake. "I'm Detective Class 4, so you're my new boss. It'll be an honour sir; I've heard all about the legendary Looker and his exploits."

"Most of them aren't true," Looker replied modestly, returning the smile. "And don't call me sir- Looker will do just fine, Danny."

"Aye aye captain," Danny said, mock saluting in a similar way to Croagunk. "And this is the Croagunk I've heard so much about then..." Croagunk nodded to him, and offered him a cigarette, which Danny laughed at. "No thanks, I don't smoke."

"Sorry about that," Looker apologised, snatching a lighter from Croagunk's hands as he prepared to light up. "He won't quit, and it's his way of welcoming people to the team."

"No problem! Glad I'm welcome!" Danny smiled. "So, I'll be working in the computer bank with Matt, trying to solve the paperweight mystery, and I'll report to you daily on findings. Give me a call if you need me for anything!"

"Will do," Looker nodded, as Danny left, quickly. He turned to the Commissioner. "Is he good?"

"One of my best," Aurelius replied. "He was second in command in the search for N, and wanted to change regions to search, but his superior, Inspector Marlborough, was adamant that N was in Sinnoh. So he got fed up, and came back to do this."

"He's a natural Detective," Forsyth added mid-wheeze. "His association skills and powers of deduction are impressive indeed."

Matt nodded. "Good to have another talented Detective helping us out. So, if we get into trouble with a Sage, will he help?"

Aurelius' pudgy face creased up in thought. "Possibly. Only if his work really isn't going anywhere- you might not see him for a lot of the time. However, thanks to the efforts of Hilda and Hilbert, we do have someone who wants to help out in battle situations..."

Hilda and Hilbert gasped in unison. "You mean... He actually..."

"Yes," came a deep, sonorous voice from behind Aurelius. "I've decided to help."

Looker definitely recognised this newcomer. Tall like Danny, but muscular along with it, his powerful frame was clad in a Native American-style poncho/tunic above torn white trousers. His face was tanned, weathered and deep set, with a few slight wrinkles and with twinkling purple eyes that looked at you with such genuine interest. They had seen practically everything, and from the looks of it, they had seen two different hairstyles the man liked- his red/orange hair blazed like Castelia's morning sun in a spiky pattern at the front, with a long ponytail hanging down his back in the most distinctive haircut in the Pokemon world...

Alder, Champion of Unova, smiled benevolently at the awestruck Policemen before him. Sure, he'd left his duties to go wandering the region, and sure, N had beaten him, but he'd helped defeat Team Plasma, and in the end, nobody in Unova could say they didn't like him. He was a legend. "I heard you needed a hand..."

Tash looked stunned. "Oh my Arceus..."

Looker was actually struggling with what to say. "Champion Alder..." Then he paused. "Shouldn't you be working in the Pokemon League?"

Alder laughed. "Haha! All the things you could have said, and you asked why I'm wandering the region, not working. Classic!"

Looker smiled. "Well, you know, Champion's duties, and all that?"

"Really? I'm not sitting up in that place all day while everyone else has fun, no sir! Not when I can put my battle talent to good use against Team Plasma..."

"Bet you I can knock out ten times as many Pokemon as you, old man!" Hilbert challenged.

"Old?" Alder looked jokingly indignant. "How dare you! I'm only 46! And bring it on! My Pokemon are stronger than yours, boy!"

Hilda smiled. "Ignore him. It's good to see you again, Alder. It's been too long..."

"I agree," the Champion nodded. "Great to see you here, helping out against Plasma! And I must say, it's a treat to see the illustrious Detective Looker and his trustworthy Croagunk. I've heard so much."

"Well," Aurelius butted in, "Looker did have a little bit of help against Galactic. And your Detective superiors sent some of it over..."

"What do you..." Looker started to ask, before Forsyth plonked a large cardboard box down on the table in front of him, blowing some dust off. "No! You didn't!"

"I did," Aurelius nodded, as Looker tore apart the box like a Christmas present, grinning from ear to ear.

"What is it?" Tash asked, craning her neck, as Croagunk too started grinning.

"It's my toys!" Looker cried. "My gadgets!"

Looker worked for the Detective branch of the International Police, but in that branch there was a separate division, dedicated to producing things to aid the Detectives on missions. Q Branch produced gadgets to rival James Bond, and had provided Looker with a multitude of toys to take on Galactic- this box contained the lot.

"Wow..." Reece breathed, taking bits and pieces out. "Commissioner, why don't we get anything like this?"

"Because," Looker answered, taking the smoke-bomb-disguised-as-a-snowglobe out of Reece's hands before he set it off, "I know how clumsy and dangerous you can be WITHOUT it."

"Even so," Matt said, longingly gazing at a miniature RC Starly drone, "I'd love to have some of this on normal missions."

"Well, we do," Looker said, loading his jacket pockets. "I'm using it against the Sages. Drone controller, check, smoke bombs, check, spy pen, check, grappling hooks, check, rocket launcher, check, mines, check, panpipe gun, check, jet pack..." He put on a backpack. "Check! Everything else, check! Got everything!"

"Very nice," the Commissioner said, clapping sardonically. "Now actually get on with some work."

Looker saluted. "Yes sir! Thank you for all this!" As the Commissioner and Forsyth walked off, Looker turned and beamed at the team. He was having a happy day now. "Right! Let's call Sage Bronius!"

**(***)**

Around one and a half hours later, Matt plugged the last cable into the USB port of his computer. "All in sir!"

"Dear God," Alder muttered, looking at the maze of cable that was embedded in the phone, the computer, and several monitors around the room. "I've seen less complex Tangela..."

"Need everything though," Bastian said. "Matt says it's all needed. And he knows what he's doing with computers..."

Matt opened his Porygon-2's Pokeball, and it joined the crowd of Policemen gathered around the nest of wiring, the cluster of computer wizardry. Along with Reece's Porygon-Z, it threw itself into the nearest monitor, becoming a mere hologram, a projection of itself as if entered cyberspace...

Hilbert, headphones around his neck, smiled as the computer pinged, green lights flashing everywhere. He stuck a thumb up to Looker as Matt's fingers started flying across keyboards. "All systems are go!"

"Right, get the map up!" Tash shouted in return.

Reece nodded, clicking a mouse key. Suddenly the room was bathed in light, as a screen larger than anything at the cinemas lit up on the wall. On the map of Unova, a traditional Police helmet marked the team's current location, while a targeting circle drifted over mountains, waiting to start tracking Bronius. "Online! Go for it, Looker!"

Looker held out the phone to Alder. "Sure you don't want to do this? Anyone else? Tash, how about you?"

"You do it, boss," she said, and before Looker replied she pressed the Call button. So he had no choice...

The answer came almost instantly. "Subterra Incorporated, masters of the underground since 1966. How may I help you?"

Looker adopted a stereotypical British accent quickly. "What ho! It's Bruce Dance here, from The Castelia Corporation, to speak to Mister Bronius about a potential contract?"

"Certainly Mister Dance, putting you through. Please ignore the slight interference, we have a little problem with the phone lines."

"Jolly good," Looker replied, looking at Alder as he waited, trying not to snigger as the Champion rolled his eyes at the accent.

There was a crackle at the other end, followed by a slight buzzing. "Guten Tag, Herr Dance. I am Matthias Bronius."

"Bronius, my good sir, about bloody time! T'was a good hour before I got to talk to anyone decent!"

"Vell, do accept my apologies," Bronius replied, curtly, in a clipped and precise German accent. "Now, vot is it you vant exactly?"

"I'd like to place an order for some diggers," Looker said, slowly, watching Matt's locator, which was going very slowly, only at 25%. "My construction company wishes to expand, and requires the finest equipment, naturally."

Bronius coughed. "Ah... Vell, I shall be honest, I'm not as much use as normal. You see, last veek ve shipped most of our stock to a bulk buyer in Sinnoh, vhere a new archaeology expedition vas starting. Ve may not have enough."

"Oh, don't worry too much," Looker said. "How much do you have? We only need ten..."

"Ten ve have!" Bronius said, barking in laughter- from the state of his lungs, Looker guessed that the Sage smoked. "Vell, vot luck you have, Herr Dance! Ten left in stockpile, ready for vhen you need them."

"Superb," Looker said, willing the progress bar to 60%. "And the payment?"

"6 million Pokedollars vill suffice," Bronius said. "Now, I vill pass you over to the Head of Executive Sales immediately. He vill handle the fine details of your order. And, mein Freund, danke schön! Your order is greatly appreciated. Auf Wiedersehen!"

"What?" Looker cried, suddenly alarmed. "No, Bronius, wait!"

There was a click, and a different voice came on. "Mister Dance? This is Hal Gordon, Head of Executive Sales. Shall we sort out your order payment?"

Looker hung up in rage. "Aah! God dammit!" He threw the phone across the room, where it hit the wall and bounced, not smashing, smugly nestling intact in the mess of cables. "We lost him, didn't we?"

"75% locked on," Matt sighed, wearily, reading the print outs, 'Signal Lost' blaring on the screen. "Our best guess is somewhere in the vicinity of Driftveil, or possibly Nimbasa. Damn! So close!"

The team started cursing and moaning, unplugging the cables, and Looker fell silent, Croagunk sullen on his shoulder. His silence was broken though when his own Xtransceiver rang, and he dug it out of his pocket, avoiding the smoke bombs he'd put in earlier. "Hello?"

"Looker is that you?" came the soft yet urgent question on the other end.

Looker stiffened, shocked, relieved, happy and worried all at the same time to hear that voice. "Anna?!"

"Yes it's me! Looker..."

"Anna how are you? Hurting anymore? Feeling a little better? How are they treating you in hospital?"

"Looker!" Anna snapped, cutting through the train of anxious questions, still slightly ratty on medication. "It's the Triad!"

That made him pause. "What?"

"You heard me! One of the Triad has woken up out of his unconscious state- Nurse Joy gave him too small an injection. He's escaped! He's got a sword, and a machine gun from somewhere, and he's killed one Nurse. He's heading for you!"

"Oh... nuts." Looker hung up the phone and turned to the team mournfully.

"What's up Looker?" Tash asked.

"One of the Triad is out."

"Oh God," Reece said, remembering. "Not them AGAIN."

"They difficult to beat?" Alder asked.

"Does a Maractus shit in the Desert?" Bastian asked sourly, and before a stunned Looker could make him apologise for his language in front of the Champion, he went on. "At least it's only one this time..."

"We can beat him," the Champion said optimistically, drawing his Pokeballs, and Croagunk echoed his sentiment, as the door to the computer room squeaked. "There's plenty of us, powerful Trainers, against one ninja. We can do it!"

"Aah."

Looker span at the sound of the voice, soft like a whisper. Stood in the doorway was a short, pale-skinned young man clad in a ripped black jumpsuit, flaps of cloth hanging off, black gloves clenched into fists. His white hair rustled in the light breeze coming in from a window, and his eyes intently surveyed the Police...

The Shadow smiled weakly. "Guess this isn't the cell room you're holding Ghetsis in, is it?"

"Plasma..." Alder growled, fingers itching towards Pokeballs.

The ninja looked surprised. "Oh! Champion Alder! What a surprise! This is not looking good!" And with that, his hands sprang to his belt..

"Duck!" Looker yelled, and as the team threw themselves to the floor, the Shadow's shuriken fizzed past their heads to bury their sharp blade-tips into walls and PC screens. A smoke bomb soon followed, blanketing the room in smog, but Looker was up and charging after him as soon as the last shuriken went past, as was Tash, and Hilda, and Hilbert, and Reece...

Nobody was going to let him get away...

There was a wild stampede down the stairs in pursuit of Plasma's ninja, headed for the exit, but Looker's team found themselves struggling. The Shadow was faster, fitter, stronger and more agile, somersaulting and jumping down whole flights in escape. But Looker's team wanted to arrest him, and they had the experience of arresting the other Sages too. This would be close.

The Shadow had leapt through the automatic doors, straight through the glass pane, straight out into the street, as Looker arrived at ground level. "There! After him!"

"Looker!"

Looker turned at the wheezing shout. "Yes Sergeant Forsyth? Rather busy at the moment!"

"He's stolen the evidence! The locked Pokeballs, his weapons, Zinzolin's Drapion, the notes Bastian wrote for every interview! Stop him!"

"Trying to," Matt muttered, as he sprinted out of the smashed door onto the street, followed closely by everyone else. Spotting the Shadow heading east, they gave chase, trying to catch up.

The dash took the Police along the eastern side of the city, through vast streets that were mostly deserted, missing their usual vibrance. The mariachi band from before the chase of Ryoku were out though, and a steady trickle of people were coming to watch them- the guitarist once again got annoyed as the pursuit of the Shadow drew attention away from them.

"He's headed for Game Freak HQ," Hilda pointed out, as the Shadow barged his way past employees, vaulted over a parked car and stormed through the doors without slowing down.

"Ryoku used to work here, didn't he?" Hilda asked, puffing slightly, out of breath.

Looker nodded. "Good idea. Reece, Hilbert, check for anything Ryoku might have left behind, any paperwork, letters to him, etc. The rest of you..." He was cut off by the loud crackle of automatic gunfire, and the screams of terrified employees; the Shadow had emptied his Bushmaster into the windows of Game Freak HQ, smashing them, in an attempt to frighten people into evacuating in a stampede that would hold Looker and co back.

Alder shook his head. "You have no idea how much I hate these guys." He paused. "Why isn't he teleporting?"

"They can only teleport in shadows, and when all three of them are awake," Hilbert said promptly. "Since Reece's Metagross put one in a coma..."

Looker nodded, as he and Croagunk forced their way into reception, the Shadow throwing his empty gun at them before running up the stairs. "Head up the stairs in pursuit! Chase him down!"

As the others disappeared up the stairs, the lift doors in reception pinged, and Croagunk grinned. "Croa croa!"

Looker smiled, and got in the lift, jabbing the button to get to the top floor, understanding Croagunk completely. Unlike the Police lift, the lift at Game Freak HQ was the world's fastest lift, capable of lightning speeds up the skyscraper. So Looker and Croagunk rose in comfort and quiet, and Looker stepped casually out of the lift at the top...

To be punched in the chest as the Shadow ran past, grabbing Looker's gun and something else from his pocket. Croagunk flew back, startled, to be trapped in the lift as the doors shut, as it started its descent back down.

"Damn!" Looker shouted, angry that his partner had been taken out of the equation, and he was made further angry when he saw how far behind his Officers were. So it was just him and the Shadow...

He followed the laughing Shadow out by the fire escape, onto the roof of the building. The breeze at ground level became a gale this high up, and Looker was glad he wasn't afraid of heights- the Game Freak HQ towered above the rest of Castelia, even above the construction cranes on other towers. On the plus side, it was a good view...

"Face it, Shadow," he yelled, "it's over! Don't run anymore!"

Leaning against a ventilation fan inlet, the Shadow sprang with unbelievable speed, firing the last bullets in Looker's gun straight at him.

Looker twisted instinctively, dodging and diving, avoiding most of them. Keanu Reeves in the Matrix would have been proud. "Give up Shadow!"

The ninja threw Looker's gun at him. "Ah, but it isn't the end, Looker! Goodbye!" And with that, he sprinted across to the edge of the building and leapt off into the sky.

Looker sighed. "What the Hell...?" He walked over to the edge, and then it became clear what the Shadow was doing..

The Shadow had stolen Looker's grappling hooks and line from his pockets, and had set up a fulcrum on the rooftop. It was basically a rope swing between buildings- using the line and the elevation of the buildings, the Shadow was using his momentum to swing to the next building, away from Looker, to escape. It was like a scene in Mission Impossible. And it was clever stuff from the Shadow, who had instantaneously calculated that it was possible and had done it without pausing for breath..

Alder arrived first on the rooftop, panting, to see Looker peering over the edge, shaking his head. "You alright Looker? I heard gunshots!"

"I'm fine," Looker said. "Nothing hit my body, I dodged." He twisted around, and around, and finally noticed a large, smoking hole in the corner of his favourite jacket, before he glared at the swinging Shadow. "That punk shot a hole in my Versace..."

"He jumped?" Alder asked, looking down.

"It's not suicide," Looker replied without looking up. "He's clever- he's using some rope to swing between buildings. Looks like he's got it a bit wrong though- he's going to land on the cranes if my calculations are correct."

"So what do we do?" Alder asked. "I haven't a Pokemon who can use Fly on me, and your only Pokemon is Croagunk..."

"Well then," Looker said, looking up into Alder's eyes, "it's time for a bit of good old-fashioned International Police creativity."

Alder read his gaze. "No.. You aren't going to..."

Looker turned around and started walking towards the fan, turning at it to face the edge. "I am. What choice do I have if I want to arrest him?"

"But it's 30 floors down!" the Champion yelled. "You're going to kill yourself!"

Looker grinned happily. "Then watch me fall!" He suddenly sprinted away from the desperate grab of Alder, pelting headlong towards the open sky and leaping off of the edge of the tower, falling into the sky from 30 storeys up with a huge smile, his jacket billowing out behind him and flapping wildly from the air resistance. "Here I go! Watch out, Shadow!"

**A/N: Well, Looker has just about killed himself there I think. Good going :) hope you like the reintroduction of the Shadow Triad. It's only small, but I wanted to write action, with a few movie references, and I think I got it..**

**Next chapter- Looker's funeral, by the looks of it... Or has he got an ingenious plan? Has he got an escape route? Will he be able to fight the Shadow and arrest him? And will there be cameos from a very fabulous 4? Possibly. Put it this way, it would be a unique and novel way to end the fic, with a funeral halfway through a huge action scene :D Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading! A review is always appreciated, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	13. Flying Without Wings

**A/N: Woo, here we are folks! Chapter 13, unlucky for some, is up! :D and I want to thank everyone for all the support this fic has had so far, from all you reviewers, favouriters, followers and PMers! This is fantastic! You guys are the best! :)**

**So yeah, Chapter 13, the unlucky chapter, but will it be an unlucky chapter for Looker? He did throw himself off of the 30th floor of a building last chapter, which generally doesn't end well... So how are you going to get out of this? And who is going to cameo in this chapter I wonder? Let's read and find out, shall we? :) On with the show...**

Castelia City had been still and quiet in the morning, a peaceful city, slumbering in the red light of the sunrise. The people had had no urgent need to do anything, to get up and out into the city centre, and neither had the weather- the water around the Piers had been as still as a millpond, and not a leaf had stirred on the roads and sidewalks of the tranquil metropolis. Yet now the city was starting to come alive, a steady flow of Castelia denizens along the streets, the hustle and bustle of city life slowly restoring itself, and the weather was picking up too, gusts of wind starting to swirl between the skyscrapers, as high above the city a maze of updrafts and blasts of wind in all directions started to form...

Looker reflected on this. That morning, he hadn't paid much attention to the weather, but he had recognised the unearthly stillness that had enveloped Castelia, and now the changes were obvious. A light breeze had arrived and was slowly but steadily building up in speed and strength, gaining power by the minute, buffeting him harder and harder. Well, obviously some of the hard wind was his air resistance as he fell, and the wind wasn't really that strong, but it was strong enough to start to affect the direction in which he fell at least.

Commuting citizens had looked up in wonder and slight worry when the Shadow started to swing between buildings by using Looker's grappling hook. After all, on a normal trip around the city where they lived, they never normally looked up to see an agile ninja flying from rooftop to rooftop by swinging off of one of the tallest skyscrapers. Now though, they saw something else instead- now, they saw Looker, throwing himself off the top of the building in a reckless, thoughtless gesture, a futile attempt to pursuit. People screamed as they looked up, backing away from his path as he fell, trying to clear out of the area which he would inevitably land in with a horrible splat. As far as they saw it, his jump was suicide.

Looker's coat billowed behind him as he plunged towards the earth like a falling angel, slowing his rapid descent by acting as a makeshift parachute. It wasn't enough though- he was still falling towards the ground without a way to stop himself. Or so the people on the ground thought. But Looker had a plan..

Looker smiled to himself, imagining the faces of the people in the chaos below him. He'd fallen around 15 floors now, and he could see the top floor of the Police HQ quite clearly, the large and open glass windows of Aurelius' office that gave him an unrivalled panoramic view of Castelia. Through those windows he spotted the Commissioner, engaging in his favourite hobby of people-watching, and inwardly grinned with glee when he saw, even from quite a distance, the shocked 'O' that Aurelius' mouth formed as he watched his superior Detective, the man in charge of his operation to finally take Team Plasma down, plummet towards his doom.

Looker threw him a jaunty wave as he reached office level, and he turned his head, eyes watering a little now from the air resistance. It wasn't true what they said- when a man did a suicidal jump, his brain doesn't shut off. In fact, his thought clarity improves drastically, borne high by vast amounts of adrenaline, the thrill and excitement of the danger making him feel more alive than ever. This was what was happening to Looker, as he basked in the glory of the rush of adrenaline, and looked up towards a group of construction cranes that towered above the skyscrapers, a relic from the long-finished building of the tallest tower in Castelia. Now he knew that as the Commissioner had seen him falling, everything would be scrambled to stop him, and to help stop the Shadow from getting away. It was only a matter of time before the others arrived to help him apprehend the ninja, who, Looker noted, had finally swung his course, arriving at the tallest crane, starting to pull himself up and collect the wire for the stolen grappling hook, ready to prepare another swing to freedom.

"Not on my watch!" Looker shouted above the howling gusts, ready to act, spurred into action not just by that sight but by the sight of the rapidly-approaching ground. "Now!"

Grasped in Looker's hand was a small controller, all black except for a single red button, and that red button was pushed now. The bottom of the backpack on Looker's back opened up, thick nozzles emerging, and flames lit up with a belch and roar, slowing Looker's downwards momentum before he shot back up into the sky like a comet, disaster averted.

Looker whooped and crowed like a man who'd just won the Pokemon Lottery, caught Mewtwo and beaten the illustrious Red, as the International Police Type 21 backpack/jetpack bore him skywards on a pillar of flame, the crowd beneath him also cheering as they watched him rocket high above the city. Looker had missed the jetpack- he hadn't used any Police gadgets since Team Galactic- and now he remembered what he'd been missing, what fun he'd had. No rudders, no brakes, just one button to ignite the burners, and twisting your whole body to steer, flying on your instinct. This was what he joined the Police for!

He tilted himself one way, then the other, flying through the cityscape, swooping around skyscrapers with , using the wind to climb and climb high above it all. He twisted a pirouette as he reached the apex of a particularly strong updraft and feathered the controls, hanging for a moment, completely still except for his fluttering coat, high atop the world. Castelia stretched beneath him like a sprawling hive of human activity, and with the clear sky he could see right across the city to each horizon, into the bay that stretched beneath Castelia and around towards Driftveil. And now he acted against the Shadow...

Standing in the actual structure of the crane's boom, Team Plasma's ninja had retrieved the grappling hook he'd stolen from Looker, and was setting the wire up to swing off of the crane and onto a large banking tower when he heard the faint whine of a machine, something that he shouldn't have been able to hear at this height. Without turning, the ninja's hands flew to his belt on instinct, and two razor-sharp shuriken whizzed through the air, and the ninja turned to see what he had hit...

To see Looker bearing down on him, the sky ablaze behind him. As the shuriken flew with deadly intentions towards him, Looker twisted himself into a barrel roll to the right, avoiding the spinning blades, before cutting out the burners on the jetpack to fall the short distance onto the crane, dropping through into the boom to kick the Shadow in the chest. The ninja didn't seem that affected by the kick, sent reeling a little, but even as he stumbled he was able to regain his balance, and he was straight back up to face down Looker.

Looker stumbled a little on impact, having not used the jetpack like that in a while, but he recovered and shook his head, exasperated, as he moved forward. The crane's boom was made of interlocking metal girders, with huge sections of empty space, yet even when losing his balance the agile ninja didn't plummet through a gap to his death, instead finding a beam to balance on. "You Team Plasma guys just don't ever give up, do you?"

The Shadow grinned manically. "Ah-ha! Neither do you, Looker! I must say, I wasn't counting on you finding your wings. I thought you were a goner..."

"Good old International Police inventions," Looker said, still advancing. "They never let a Policeman down." Then he looked. "However, they do let Team Plasma down..."

The ninja turned and noticed what Looker had seen- when Looker had kicked the ninja, the handle of the grappling hook had been thrown off the side of the crane, and was now dangling in the air carelessly. The Shadow's swing plan was now out of the window. "Oh, damn you Looker!"

Looker was about to reply with something witty, but instead he had to frantically duck as the Shadow launched into a midair roundhouse kick, and he avoided the kick by a millimetre. As he stumbled back though, trying to regain his footing on the slightly slippery bars, the Shadow lunged forward, keeping balance perfectly as fists span and kicks shot out, attempting to knock Looker from the crane. Looker noted how the ninja fought, like a machine, with patterns and rhythms- obviously Team Plasma trained him well with all the old, PREDICTABLE moves- and he managed to combat most of them. One surprise kick caught him in the stomach though, and the winded Looker staggered backwards in pain, his foot completely missing the bar as he fell through...

The Shadow walked over to where Looker had fallen through, and peered down into the gap. "That was close, wasn't it Looker?" he asked, almost cheerfully.

Looker grimaced in pain as he held onto the girder above him for dear life, clutching on fiercely. His legs dangled freely though below him, the hustle and bustle of the city a long, long way down. "Don't suppose a hand up would be alright?"

The Shadow laughed, as one of Looker's hands slipped on the damp metal and lost its grip, leaving him dangling 30 stories up by one hand, the pain from this movement making him gasp. "I think not Looker!" He pulled his short sword, a wicked looking thing similar to a machete, from his belt and raised it, as Looker's fingers started to scrabble vainly at the girder, as he started to lose his grip. "Goodbye Looker!"

Looker hissed though, and as the sword started to come down he let go with his other hand...

And pressed the button on the control. The burners of the jetpack instantly ignited, and rather than falling Looker shot up like a champagne cork, through the gap in the crane. Taking the Shadow by surprise, he took the advantage and wrenched the sword from the ninja's grasp, before landing on the very top of the crane's boom. "Nice try."

The Shadow pulled himself up onto the top too to face off with Looker, his face suddenly unhappy. "It's not nice to steal.."

"It's not nice to try to throw me off a crane," Looker reasoned.

"Touché," the Shadow replied, but suddenly he was ignoring Looker; suddenly he twisted and, from a standing start, launched into a front flip that brought two legs kicking up into the air, slamming into Looker's chin. The sword was wrenched from Looker's grasp, fortunately falling over the side of the crane and out of the Shadow's reach, but Looker hit the deck hard, the back of his head crunching against the metal of the crane as he fell backwards.

The Shadow smiled as he leaped over Looker, and wordlessly sprinted along the entire length of the crane's boom. Looker thought he was being reckless, but in actual fact the Shadow had given himself enough momentum to soar through the air and land on another, shorter crane, rolling a little as he impacted against the boom's roof.

"How does he do that?" Looker asked himself, groaning in pain,marvelling at the ninja's strength and lack of injury, but he didn't stay still for long. The jetpack's rockets kicked in again as Looker rose into the air, slowly this time, hovering for a little bit before gradually moving towards the other crane, setting himself down gently on the top. But that grace didn't last for long...

Looker whirled as the ninja appeared behind him suddenly, and swung blows at him with his elbows, his knees and anything else he could use. Looker knew how to counter any style of unarmed combat, from experience, and he knew the Shadow would too, so by being unpredictable he would hold out well against his enemy.

He allowed himself a little smirk as a headbutt struck the ninja in the mouth, a tooth flying off into the sky, but the Shadow got a grip. He quickly dodged Looker's next moves and started smoothly somersaulting backwards along the boom, his hands sliding towards his belt. Looker saw this, saw the shuriken on the belt, and reached for his own pockets rapidly...

As the Shadow entered mid-jump, Looker raised International Police Special Equipment 42AX to his mouth, and blew quickly on the panpipe gun. The one shot it offered buried itself into the Shadow's right shoulder, but he couldn't prevent the shuriken in the left hand from wheeling dangerously through the air and finding its mark...

The Shadow smiled as the fuel pipe on Looker's jetpack was severed, the liquid that gave Looker the power of flight sprayed across the boom. "Well, there go your flight plans, Detective. Whereas I am on the next departure..." He waved, and threw himself off the side of the boom into empty space. "Cheerio!"

Looker knew he was on borrowed time with the jetpack- it was running on half a tank, as he hadn't refuelled it at all in over 4 months, having not used it since Galactic- but it made him angry that he couldn't fly. As he looked over the side though he realised that the Shadow could- what he'd mistaken for tattered fabric hanging from the black jumpsuit actually formed part of the wings of an Emolga suit. He'd only heard of them a week ago from Reece, but they used fabric as wings, and basically turned the wearer into a flying squirrel, able to glide effortlessly for short periods of time. Unless he did something, the Shadow would use the Emolga suit to fly away to freedom...

"Sod it," he said to himself, and leapt off the crane into the void in pursuit...

This time, as the wind whipped past Looker, as he plunged towards Earth slowed only by the air resistance of his coat, he felt quite worried, almost afraid. This time, he wasn't as high up, but he didn't have anything to launch himself back in the air and save his life. This time he really was going to go splat on the sidewalks of Castelia, unless he thought of something quickly...

As luck would have it, Looker's billowing coat itself was providing him with a semi-useful solution to his problem. By grabbing the corners of it and lifting them up under his arms, he could give himself half-wings of fabric, able to control the direction of his rapid descent. It wasn't an Emolga suit, but, as Looker swooped upwards to avoid a wild Swanna flying past, he realised it was better than death. And so, using the wind, his coat and his already high speed, Looker joined the chase, and soared through the concrete and glass jungle in pursuit of his prey. The inhabitants of Castelia looked up in wonder from the streets as the two flying men streaked past overhead, weaving a pathway between towers and around block corners.

The one thing Looker didn't want was a dogfight, as in his position holding onto his coat corners he couldn't access any weapons, and couldn't dodge as well as the Shadow. Unfortunately for him though as the Shadow rolled gracefully in midair, speeding around a corner on a fresh burst of wind, he spotted Looker, and his expression hardened, angered at the revelation that Looker had came up with a way to give chase. Twisting onto his back, not looking where he was flying or what obstacles would appear, the ninja managed to fire off two shuriken at Looker.

"Where does he get all of those from?" Looker muttered, doing a barrel roll to avoid the spinning blades, but suddenly his vision was blurred with a cloud of thick black fog. Choking, he powered through the smoke from the smoke bomb the Shadow had set off, and fell into the trap- two shuriken flew at him, slicing nearly through his coat, shredding his makeshift wings. There was no way he was going to keep airborne now, and the Shadow knew it, waving as he disappeared from sight, as Looker started an uncontrollable dive...

"Oh shit!" Looker shouted, yelling in panic at the top of his voice. He was furious that his favourite coat had been ripped and torn, the makeshift wings wrecked and flapping uselessly, trailing behind him as he fell. He wasn't going to survive this one, and by his calculations he was going to land on and crush the famous Casteliacone stall, which would not go down well with the locals. Ten floors to ground, nine, eight SEVENSIXFIVEFOUR...

Looker landed with a thump on the back of something fluffy, the heavy landing shaking whatever it was, sending a loose feather flying up Looker's nose as he nearly slid off, clutching on to a powerful shoulder blade as a huge wing flapped. Whatever it was was rocketing through the sky at high speed in pursuit of the Triad, and as Looker grew more accustomed to his position, he realised it was very familiar. "Brav?!"

"Croa gunk!"

Looker smiled as he looked up the back of Hilbert's Braviary to see his reliable companion and partner Croagunk, perched precariously on the head of the Valiant Pokemon, piloting him as he soared through Castelia. The Police had obviously seen Looker's jetpack flames, and had sprung into action- while Brav and Croagunk had been sent to rescue him as his jetpack and wings failed, a Police helicopter buzzed above the city, and Looker could spot Tash at its helm, looking worried. As he looked up, there was an almighty roar, and something shot past on a pillar of billowing flame- Looker could just about make out Hilbert and Hilda, faces grim and determined, holding onto Reshiram for dear life.

"Great work buddy," he said softly, patting Croagunk on the head.

Croagunk actually smiled, and saluted, handing Looker a radio, as Brav squawked. Looker looked up, assessed the scene, and planned. He knew what to do NOW.

"All Police units, this is Detective Looker," he announced. "I am alive and well, but I'm not going to be happy if that Shadow gets away. He's headed into the centre of the city; all ground units, track him over your heads, and follow him. I'm going in!"

Looker switched off the radio before he looked down. Down below him, in the exact centre of the metropolis, was a stark contrast to the maze of metal, glass and concrete- a large garden/park, with plenty of greenery and trees. It was a pleasant area, built at the intersection of every road in the city, and down those roads Looker could spot Policemen approaching the park, including Matt, Alder and Danny. With a large flowing fountain in the middle and lush green grass all around, the park was acclaimed as the most beautiful spot in the city. This was Central Plaza. And this was where the Shadow would make his last stand...

The ninja was already on the ground as Brav lined up for a final approach, fiddling with something. He was bent over, handing something over, and as Brav approached he started to turn, a Pidove revealed from behind him, something attached to the Pidove's leg. The Pidove flew off as the Shadow looked up at the magnificent Braviary, but his faint smile turned into a snarl as Looker leapt off. "You!"

"I just don't die, do I?" Looker said happily, almost a little giddily. "Good idea, but Brav and Croagunk came to back me up."

"This is beyond a joke now, Looker," the Shadow seethed. "How can you survive, have so much luck?"

"Because we're the good guys," Alder said, walking up to stand beside Looker with a nod. "The good guys will always win."

As the Shadow shook his head and started to form a reply, Looker interrupted, as he stepped forward. "That's a messenger Pidove I take it?"

"Indeed," the Shadow nodded, walking backwards as Looker approached. "Getting the one vital thing to the person who wants it."

"One of your Sages, I assume? My guess is Giallo, or Rood. Ah well, never mind. I see you have the rest of the evidence on you still. And in that case, I wish to arrest you for common theft, and assault on a Police Officer."

"Ha!" The ninja laughed, some of his confidence returning as he drew a thin, curved sword from behind his back. Looker hadn't noticed that before. "You'll never take me alive, copper! Come on! Fight me!" And as Looker opened his mouth to reply, the ninja yelled something in Kantonese, before charging at him, the sword raised in midair...

There was a blur from one of the bushes, and a black shadow sneaked across in front of the sprinting Shadow, a trailing leg stuck out to trip him up. The ninja's momentum carried him over the leg, stumbling forward, before the figure span on the spot to ram home a knee to the stomach of the ninja...

As the ninja hissed in pain, his assailant stood back, and walked casually to stand by Alder's side. The man looked almost vampiric, with very pale skin and upper-class clothes, but there was a hint of shabbiness about them. There was nothing shabby about his long black fringe, or the twin peaks of black hair sticking up into the air like devil horns, but there was a tiredness and a boredness in those deep eyes...

Grimsley of the Elite Four flicked his scarf back over his shoulder. "I don't think you'll be hurting anyone with that sword," he drawled, a lazy, arrogant voice, as he twirled a Pokeball between his fingers. "Will he Caitlin?"

"No he won't," a low female voice said, sounding almost hollow. A sleepy-looking young girl with very long blonde hair, trailing like a carpet, had emerged from behind a tree, dressed all in pink, her eyes glowing blue as blue Psychic energy crackled around the sword the Shadow held, wrenching it from his grasp and sending it spinning into the trees.

As Caitlin emerged from behind a tree, another woman emerged behind the fountain, an array of impressive Ghost-type Pokemon flanking her and cutting off the Shadow's exits behind. Dressed in a short purple dress and tights, clutching a book, she didn't appear at first to be battle-ready, but beneath the purple hair, brown eyes stared intently at the ninja from behind thin glasses, watching his every move, checking him out as an opponent. Shauntal wouldn't let him get away..

And neither would the final arrival. As the Shadow overcame Caitlin's Psychic push and struggled to his feet, two strong, big, muscly arms lifted the ninja into the air and threw him across the Plaza into the side of the fountain. The orange and black hair of the newcomer contrasted with his brown skin, hardened by many a fight, and muscles rippled along his body, while his baggy pants billowed in the breeze. His eyes were surprisingly deep and determined, and he had massive paw-like fists, bigger than Bastian's, a black belt around his waist also indicating that he was a brute of a man.

Marshal laughed at the ninja, whose defined muscles looked small and pathetic besides the Elite Four Trainer, as the Shadow pulled himself upright against the fountain, the Elite Four, Alder and Looker all closing in on him as the Police cut off his avenues of escape. "Wow," he said in a deep voice, "you're pretty screwed here, boy."

The Shadow spat defiantly on the floor. "Boy?" he sneered, all manic humour gone. "You cannot defeat me! All of you, standing together, will not defeat the might of Team Plasma!"

"Sounds a bit like desperation to me," Grimsley drawled.

Looker nodded. "Now, as I see it, Shadow, you have only three options. You can't run, because there's no exit. You could surrender, right here, right now, and end this. Or you could make it difficult, but we would destroy you in a Pokemon battle, with the five..." he paused as Hilbert and Reshiram landed with a bump behind him, "make that six, strongest Trainers in Unova. And I wouldn't count on you winning a fight either..."

"Oh really?" the Shadow said, laughing suddenly. "I'll take you all on!" His hand went to his belt and paused. "Wait..."

"Looking for these?" Caitlin asked, almost mockingly, as her Psychic powers levitated the Pokeballs she'd stolen from the Shadow in the air in front of her.

The Shadow growled. "Then I have no choice..." He screwed up his eyes, and disappeared from existence...

To reappear in the water of the fountain a foot behind him, screaming in pain from the many bleeding cuts on his body. "Ah shit! Aaaah! It hurts!"

"What's up with him?" Alder asked. "Did he just try to teleport?"

Looker grinned. "He did. But he can't teleport. The Triad need all three members in a triangle to successfully teleport- without them, he takes up the strain of ripping reality apart all by himself. And he can't do that. It's ripping him apart."

The Shadow snarled again, pulling himself up to the top of the ornamental fountain by willpower alone, the water flowing red, stained by his blood. "Aargh it hurts so much..."

"This is why you don't run from us," Looker said, matter-of-factly, walking up to the edge of the fountain. "It never ends well. And that's why you don't try and teleport- we put your brothers in a coma. They won't wake up for a while..."

The Shadow wiped something away from the corner of his eye, and wrenched his last two shuriken from his belt, spinning them in his hands. "No! I will not be beaten! I will succeed, for Lord Ghetsis!"

"No you won't."

The Shadow turned behind him and threw the two shuriken at the speaker. "YES. I. WILL!"

Reece jumped to the floor and rolled out of the shuriken's flight path, before standing up and dusting himself off, an open Pokeball in his hand. "No you won't. Because you're about to find out what we did to your brothers to put them in a coma."

Too late, the weary Shadow, exhausted and battered and bruised and torn from the fight, realised that something was wrong. Too late did he realise that a shadow was falling across him, that he couldn't dodge it. Finally, after a lengthy and drawn-out pursuit and fight, the ninja would be taken down, the same way the other two had fallen in the Relic Castle; Reece's Metagross, levitating unseen above the fountain, cut its levitation to drop from on high and catch a blow to the side of the Shadow's head, the force of the five-hundred-pound falling Metagross enough to severely concuss him and knock him out, if not put him in a coma.

As Metagross landed with a thump and a splash in the fountain, Looker reached down into the spray and the water and fished out the body of the ninja, sodden and bedraggled, bloody cuts covering his skin. He slapped a pair of handcuffs to the Shadow's wrists, not taking any chances, and hauled the unconscious prisoner to his feet, wordlessly hauling him off in the direction of Police HQ, Croagunk hopping on the Shadow's shoulder. Alder and co followed him, walking behind, asking why he wouldn't let them take care of it, but Looker was determined to deliver the Shadow to Aurelius himself. He had fought for it, he had nearly died for it, but he had beaten the Shadow. And now he would be the one to bring him in...

**A/N: Well, we all knew Looker wasn't going to die, didn't we? :D that was an intense action scene there though, with the fights on the cranes and the flying and all! Hope you liked it! (If anyone gets which movie the fight on the cranes comes from, PM me. You will win an OC cameo for the next story I do..)**

**Next chapter: Looker clears up Castelia, sorts out a few rowdy rebels, and then... decides to go after Sage Bronius! But is Looker's cunning and disguise talent good enough to get Sage number 4? Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading! A review is always appreciated, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	14. Cleaning Up The Streets

**A/N: Here we are folks! Chapter 14 of The Chase, and just about on time too! :D**

**A lot of people seem to be guessing that the mystery phone caller of Chapter 8 is Colress. I can honestly put that one to bed now, as it is not him- he will be mentioned in this one, but I'm saving his role as a main character for the sequel (SPOILERS! :O). However, one member of Team Plasma who will feature in this fic and the sequel is the Shadow, and the aftermath of Looker's battle with him will be showed right here, right now, as well as some of Danny's genius Detective work, and as well as Looker cleaning up the streets of Castelia (watch out punks), and we'll get to see the start of the hunt for Bronius. So much! :) I hope you enjoy! On with the show...**

On Castelia's streets the afternoon sun started to truly come out in full, and finally the dull, gloomy stillness of the early morning was starting to lift. The last of the shadows were expelled from the corners they were lurking in as high in the sky light rained down on the metropolis. The day was cool, a pleasant sea breeze making Castelia's wide avenues a nice place to be, and now the city's residents were starting to come out in earnest to enjoy the day; the buzz and vibrance had been restored, the hum of hundreds of conversations loud from the crowds of people who moved from place to place like a swarm of Durant. If Castelia could have been compared to anything, it really was a Durant hive- frenetic and energetic, the movements of thousands of bodies a rush in a vast maze of towering structures.

Commissioner Aurelius had always used the Durant analogy, ever since moving to Castelia and taking over the top job in the Police- in fact, his favourite pastime was simply watching the chaotic, unpredictable world pass by beneath him. But now he was aware of something else, something that hung in the air of the city- a whisper. As far as he could tell from the laptop monitoring social networking sites and the news media, rumours were flying around Castelia, rumours of a flying man, of a fight on the cranes, of a man who nearly killed himself falling. He'd been told by Forsyth that Looker was out on a mission, and then he'd seen Looker himself, diving headlong towards the ground before activating his jetpack. What had he been up to? Aurelius had no idea, and after sending half of the Police into the city to help him in whatever it was he was doing, Aurelius was a little worried. Was Looker on to something?

The visitor in Aurelius' office coughed politely, shuffling a little in the large, solid chair he had drawn up to the desk to talk to Aurelius. His skin was fair and pale, but not to the extent of the Slenderman-esque Danny Stamp- this man was also more expansive, with a substantial paunch that suggested he was a gourmet (although this was nowhere near the largeness of the Commissioner's stomach). The best phrase to describe him was 'padded-out'- the man was comfortable in his own body, happy to sit back, relax and enjoy the smooth and casual ride of life, watching it all through dull yet full blue eyes that had intense depth. "Thomas, my friend, are you alright?"

"Hmm?" Aurelius said, turning away from looking out of the window and sitting back down in a hurry. "It's nothing, honestly."

The man waited patiently for a flicker of betrayal in Aurelius' eyes. "Thomas, I'm worried you're not being totally honest with me. Are you quite well?"

Aurelius waved a hand dismissively. "I'm fine. Just a little concerned about current events in the city, that's all."

The man nodded slowly. "I see. The man who we saw jumping from the Game Freak building, the man who interrupted our meeting. You know him?"

"Yes," the Commissioner replied, wearily sighing. "He's survived, thank God- I really would be stuffed if he didn't. I just worry what has happened in the city, what's gone wrong to require his intervention. He was supposed to be on mission you know, and I've had to scramble everyone to aid him in the hope that we can help him in whatever he's doing.."

The man put two and two together. "Ah, so that man is Detective Looker, the leader of your Team Plasma investigation. It's certainly troubling that his assistance is needed in our city." He paused. "How is he to work with? We've talked a little about your Police's successes in cutting down street crime, and Gym Leader Burgh informs me that you have done a sterling job, but how goes the crucial work? The hunt to finally bring down the greatest threat to Unova's safety and integrity?"

Aurelius smiled at last, albeit faintly. "I can see why Looker is one of the Police's finest, and how he managed to save Sinnoh. Glowing references, sharp wit, good physical strength and a genius mind at planning ahead. He's a little bit of a loose cannon, needs a little reigning in, and his Croagunk needs to learn manners, but he is a great person to be around, an important asset to the team."

"I see. Now, I know that Team Plasma's leader, Mr Ghetsis Harmonia, was arrested before Looker's arrival, but what of the rest?"

Aurelius cracked his knuckles, getting down to business. "Well, for starters it is not Looker's job to go after N Harmonia. That is the responsibility of Inspector Marlborough, in Sinnoh leading that operation. Looker however seems to believe that N is not in Sinnoh, and that Marlborough is wasting time, but Looker doesn't have enough time on his hands for all these investigations, so I'm leaving N to Marlborough."

"Okay. And the Sages?"

"Glad you asked! Looker has been sensational so far with the Sages. Gorm, Ryoku and Zinzolin are all under arrest at the moment, and despite no real information spilt so far, despite lips being generally sealed, Looker has uncovered that the Sages may have their own agenda, their own Plan. He has also eliminated the threat of the Shadow Triad, as two of them now lie in a coma..."

"A coma? Wait, he put them in one?" the other man asked, but he was aware that Aurelius had trailed off, his mouth agape as he stared across the office. "Thomas?" The Commissioner still didn't respond to him, looking shocked, and the man turned...

The sight that greeted him was truly an impressive one. A huge group of people were clustered around the open front doors of the elevator up to Aurelius' office, and the man realised for the first time the strength of the operation against Team Plasma. The Elite Four of Unova, Alder the Unova Champion, Hilbert Grey the Trainer and Master of Reshiram, his just-as-powerful sister Hilda Grey, and around five Police Officers, Aurelius' elite team to take on Team Plasma, headed up by one man, holding a limp body in his arms, the leader of the team...

Looker detached himself from the crowd of teammates and set off towards Aurelius, Croagunk hopping along behind him in what was (for once) a smart fashion. Upon reaching the Commissioner's desk, Looker dumped the body of the Shadow on the wooden surface before Aurelius, and stepped back smartly. "Mission accomplished, sir."

Aurelius was stunned. He hadn't known that the ninja had woken up and escaped, that the ninja was the person who Looker had been fighting on rooftops, and the sight of an enemy he thought defeated shocked him, so much so that he was left grasping for straws as to how to start the conversation. "Looker... what the Hell do you call this?!"

"An unconscious ninja, sir," Looker replied. "This was the Shadow who wasn't knocked into a coma by Reece's Metagross, sir. He woke up, killed a Nurse and tried to make off with valuable evidence. One piece got away, but the rest is safe, and our friend here..." Croagunk kicked the body with feeling and strength. "He won't be waking up for a while, sir."

"He escaped?" Aurelius said, stunned. "My God. And he just walked in here and walked out with the evidence..." He trailed off. "That was you with the jetpack, out there. You jumped off a building, Looker! What would you have done if the jetpack didn't work?"

"Splattered, sir?" Reece suggested, trying to keep a straight face and failing, as Hilda and Marshal started laughing.

Aurelius silenced them with a glare. "And then you come in here, barging into an important meeting, with a limp, wet body and half of Unova's Pokemon Trainer hierarchy?!"

"Sorry Mr Aurelius," Shauntal said, smiling meekly. "We just wanted to get him in safely, and to make sure that you knew Looker was alright and that we'd won."

"A commendable attitude," the man said, smiling benevolently at Aurelius. "Glad to see that the Elite Trainers are taking an interest in the Team Plasma affair, and that your team is successful in keeping us safe."

"Thank you, my friend," Looker replied, nodding to him. "I'm afraid I didn't catch your name..."

"Leeway. Robert Leeway. Mayor of Castelia, for my sins." Croagunk salaamed the Mayor, which made him laugh. "I was discussing with Thomas here your successes, and might I take this opportunity to tell you how very happy I am to see such a well-oiled, polite and fantastically able team here to keep the peace."

"Um, wow," Tash said, gratefully. "Thank you, Mister Mayor."

"Please, call me Robert. Everyone else does."

"Daddy!"

"Or they call me that," the mayor muttered, as a loud childish voice rang out across the office, making everyone turn. "Yes dear?"

The new arrival tottered into the office rather daintily, a little girl who looked just a couple of years below Pokemon Trainer age. She was unbelievably cute, in her blue skirt and white blouse with knee-length white socks, and adorable little red shoes that clicked on the floor. Her light purple fringe framed big, blue cute eyes that oozed charm, and made a few people in the room instantly reach for their wallets to give her money (even Grimsley, whose gambling habits and debts were so dire that he KNEW he had no money AT ALL). "Daddy, can I go outside? I really wanna go outside! It's boring staying in here!"

Robert sighed. "Ladies and gentlemen, my daughter, Lottie. Believe me, you weren't interrupting a serious meeting; it's hard to focus when your 8-year-old daughter is wandering around asking for things."

"Kids, who'd have them?" Matt and Grimsley said at the same time, to nervous male laughter- Looker laughed more though at the disappointed faces Tash and Shauntal made.

"Darling, its only going to be a few more minutes before we leave," Robert said. "Can't you just hold on a little longer?"

"But Daddy, I really wanna! I'll take Hamish to protect me!" A small, harmless looking Herdier, the least likely thing to protect anything, peeked around her legs. "Pwease?"

Half the room's wills melted to that word, and the mayor's was one of them. "Alright, fine. But you're going out with one of the Police Officers to protect you, okay?"

Lottie beamed, and the 'Aww's were loud and clear, as Aurelius motioned to the wizened old desk sergeant Forsyth to go with her (Looker laughed at the fact Aurelius had picked the least likely to have fun with her). "Okay! Thank you Daddy!"

Robert shook his head as his daughter skipped off, loyal Herdier and old man in tow. "I can never say no to her, you know?" He smiled benignly.

"I can see why," Looker said, nodding. "So, where were we? You're having a meeting here, and we've brought in the Shadow, but what now?"

Aurelius clapped his hands. "We continue our work. It's excellent, Champion Alder, that your Elite Four are here to help too, considering I have been meaning to have a meeting with all of you about the region's current situation. Mayor Leeway and I wish to talk to you on this matter."

Caitlin nodded, slowly. "Certainly, Commissioner. But what of the others?"

Aurelius looked at them all. "Are you still here? Go on now, back to work! Playtime with Looker's toys is over; we still have three fugitive Sages to catch. I believe you were tracking down Bronius?"

"Yessir," Bastian said, saluting. "If I could be excused from that, I've scheduled an interview with Ryoku. I shall go and lock up the Shadow on the way though."

Aurelius nodded. "Be my guest. The rest of you, your equipment has not been touched or fiddled with. You should be able to pick up from where you left off with Bronius."

Looker smiled. "Okay team, let's get back to work! We're close to getting him now..."

As the team followed Looker into the elevator, waving goodbye to the mayor and to the Elite Trainers as they settled down for a meeting with Aurelius, Hilbert shook his head. "No time off, then?"

"Yeah, I thought that," Reece said, as the doors slid shut and the lift started its slow descent. "Looker, you've just jumped off of two cranes and a skyscraper, and nearly been killed twice, AND we've successfully recaptured a leading Team Plasma member, all in one morning."

"Surely we should be entitled to a little rest?" Hilda finished.

Looker shrugged, the shakiness of the adrenaline rush evaporating. "Personally, I think its best we keep working on this. We are very close to Sage Bronius, so it would be a shame to waste it. But I understand what you mean- jumping off a tall crane with no way to stop yourself is a traumatic experience, and people don't tend to immediately go back to work after that."

The team laughed, as they stepped out of the elevator into the large computer room that they had occupied, avatars of Reece's Porygon-Z and Matt's Porygon-2 still whizzing around the pixelated screen in cyberspace, ready to continue where they left off.

"Back to work then, folks," Tash called, plugging herself in with a pair of headphones. "You heard Looker and the Commissioner, Bronius won't just hand himself in!"

Looker put an arm out before Reece could exit the elevator and stopped him. "Not you."

"Huh? You don't want me to..."

Looker shook his head. "No. I want you to go and sort out the evidence with Bastian. Find out what the Shadow made off with, what's missing, categorise everything and report back to me on why some of it is in there. This is vital- I need to know what the Sages were carrying, so I can get into their minds and see what planning they've done."

"Sure!" Reece paused. "Wait, when you say get into their minds, you're not going to use Caitlin's Psychic powers, are you?"

"CROA!" Croagunk said adamantly, waving his arms frantically.

"He's right. It's immoral to use a Psychic in that way, and it's bad enough that we've already put three Plasma members in a coma trying to stop their Plan. Mental Police brutality like that would cost us our jobs." Looker stopped talking as a familiar face crossed the room and made his way towards him. "Ah, Danny! Any news!"

Danny Stamp didn't reply, looking a little anxious. "Aurelius sent me down to see you. You need to come and see something..."

**(***)**

In Castelia City Pokemon Centre and Hospital, the Major Incident Ward was mostly quiet and deserted, only a few Nurses and Doctors working. As Looker followed Danny on his way through the eerie, dark corridors, he could hear the drip of water from something very far off, the only noise in a building quieter than a funeral parlour, and the same morbid feeling hung in the air. This was an area of gloom and sadness.

Croagunk shivered, feeling it the most. "Gunk..."

"Danny, why have you brought me here?" Looker asked in a whisper, confused and yet somehow slightly worried. An idea was forming in his head, and he was dreading being here if that idea was right..

Wordlessly, Danny stopped, and motioned for Looker to look through a window into one of the rest areas, and Looker pressed his face up close to the glass, peering through the dankness and darkness into who was lying down on the bed. "No..."

Danny looked sad, very glum, as Looker saw Anna Maeda, her eyes closed, peace somehow emanating from her pale face, delicate black makeup stained with tears. "I know. Shortly after you stormed out in pursuit of the Shadow, she collapsed at HQ. She hadn't fully recovered yet from the operation to remove the bullet Zinzolin shot at her, and her heart was weak."

"Cardiac arrest?" Looker breathed, not believing Danny's words.

The tall Detective nodded. "Her heart gave out on her- because of the stress and pace, her heartbeat had raced to uncomfortably high levels. She was, technically, dead for seventy-two seconds, which is why they won't let us in to see her. But she's alive."

Looker could see inside that room, and saw the heartbeat monitor that was registering a pitifully-low beat to Anna's heart, saw the coldness of her face and skin, saw how frail she looked compared to the first time he had seen her. "She's not giving up the fight though. She forced herself to come to us, to warn us about the Shadow. She still fiercely wants to defeat Plasma."

"I know. A superbly brave attitude. I know her from Police Academy, and if she was conscious right now, she would be wanting to get up and about to help us. But she will be frustrated by how weak she really is- her recovery will take a while. She won't be ready for field work for another month, and it'll be two weeks before she's even ready for an office job."

"Croa..." Croagunk said, forlornly and miserably, turning away from the window sadly. He'd liked Anna, Looker could tell that much, and this was affecting him deeply; Looker never normally saw Croagunk so raw and so emotional, as he was often sarcastic and his his true feelings, but when he saw Croagunk's real emotions he knew it was a bad situation to be in.

"Come on," Danny said softly, noticing Croagunk's face and starting to walk away from the window. "Let's leave her be. We have other things to discuss too..."

Looker nodded, following him, giving the sleeping Anna a final goodbye and walking towards the exit behind Danny, Croagunk in tow. "Have you told the Commissioner about this?"

"No. He doesn't know that she was the one who came in and warned us, and I'd prefer to keep it that way. Let her recuperate in peace, you know?"

"Croa gunk croa?" Croagunk asked, looking confused.

"Other things?" Looker translated.

Danny nodded, as they passed the receptionist Nurse Joy and the small line of young Trainers wanting their Pokemon healed, heading out of the door into Castelia. "Yes. I've been doing some Detective work myself, while you've been flying."

"Next time, we'll swap," Looker said, smiling faintly. "Never mind Anna, I'm not sure my heart can take any more stunts like that."

Danny laughed lightly. "Ha! You're sounding like that old miser Forsyth!" He paused. "Anyway, I've been researching, and sorting out."

"Oh yeah? What've you found out?"

Danny, currently dressed in a dark black suit, produced something from inside his jacket pocket and handed it to Looker. "Hilbert found this in Ryoku's desk in the Game Freak office that he worked in."

Looker opened the envelope and slid out a thin piece of paper. "Blueprints?"

Danny nodded. "For who, I don't know, but the machine on this diagram appears to be able to draw energy from Pokemon and their attacks, and store it."

"A useful device," Looker said, "but for what purpose?"

"Again, I have theories, but I'm uncertain. Under close examination though I discovered a Team Plasma crest in the top right corner, and I discovered the stamp in Ryoku's drawer. This is their document. They want this machine. And, the clincher, this is a copy. The original has already been sent to someone else."

"So Plasma have a machine that we know very little about, and will use it for unclear purposes. But could this be part of their Plan- do they need something to activate it?"

Danny smiled. "You are very good at joining the dots, Looker. I wouldn't have thought about that in a million years. Shows who the great Detective who took down Team Galactic is..."

Looker shrugged off the compliment modestly. "Any other clues you could find in the drawer?"

"A photo, of a scientist. A blonde-haired man, with blue-framed glasses, and the name Akuroma was on the back. We tested the photo on the Police database, and came up with nothing, and we tested for fingerprints on both pieces of evidence, but whoever handled it was wearing gloves."

"Akuroma?" Looker asked, curious.

"A name that does not exist. However, Colress Achroma DID exist. When searching with the photo, the entries of Akuroma had been erased, but not of Colress Achroma. He was a gifted scientist, an expert in Pokemonology, cybertech and engineering. And he apparently died two years ago, in a laboratory explosion; he has not been seen since. He is a ghost, a disappearance."

"So could Colress be alive?" Looker thought out loud. "Could he be in league with Plasma?"

"I don't know. There are witnesses to say they saw him die, but the evidence we have is intriguing. There was nothing suspicious about him though, no criminal record. I believe Plasma dug up the blueprints for the machine Colress built that exploded, and adjusted them- you can see the more recent pen marks and different handwriting on the blueprints where someone else has edited Colress' designs- surely the man himself would be the one to edit them?"

"Interesting," Looker mused, puzzled by the enigma of Colress. "What else have you found out?"

Danny checked his Xtransceiver. "Well, I've found out that all of the evidence is back and safe, all accounted for, except for Zinzolin's Drapion's Pokeball."

"How odd," Looker commented. "That's not what I would expect to be high-priority for theft."

"I know, it's curious. I've also done some looking into the paperweight mystery, and eliminated the unlikely suspects. You and Croagunk are accounted for, as is Tash, and Anna is too injured to have done it, but anyone else is open season. Forsyth perhaps would struggle to make it upstairs so quickly, but it could be Reece or Bastian; both of them met each other in the evidence locker, so they have alibis there, but what happened before is vague."

"I discounted Reece immediately," Looker said. "He's a good friend and a great Officer, but he is too young and too reckless- he doesn't have the mind to plan such an elaborate conspiracy against the Commissioner."

"So we rule out the kid Officer. But the Commissioner himself could be bluffing us- he could have made the fake paperweight to make us discount him as suspicious. Matt Damon could have placed it, when he went up to find the other evidence, but I'm ruling out Hilda and Hilbert, as heroes who originally took out Plasma."

Looker nodded, and smiled. "You are VERY good, Mr Stamp."

Danny rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I try, sir. A compliment like that from you is worth a lot to me... Oh, and I also think I've worked out where Bronius is hiding."

"GUNK CROA?!" Croagunk yelled, startling a small Pidove.

Danny grinned. "It's easy really. When you were talking to him on the phone, there was an unusually high level of static interference. Now, forgive me if I'm wrong, but even a Porygon-Z at the source of the call doesn't affect it that much. That means Bronius is hiding somewhere with an unusually high level of background energy."

Something clicked, a lightbulb going off in Looker's head. "...! Aha!"

Danny nodded. "You passed it on the way into Castelia when you arrived in Unova. Bronius is the Underground King, ruler of the mines and caves. So he's gone on the run, and literally gone underground, into one of the caves his company technically owns, where the energy produced plays havoc with electrical equipment. The Chargestone Cave."

Looker stared at him. "That is brilliant. If you're right, Aurelius and I owe you a serious promotion."

"A box of donuts will do just fine," Danny replied, smirking, as they turned the corner towards the HQ, but his face suddenly hardened as he saw the building. "Wait a minute..."

Looker saw it too now, and it was not a nice sight- Lottie Leeway had her back pressed up against a wall, her Herdier yapping at her feet, staring down the large, muscular Scrafty that had its fists balled. The young girl looked terrified, and the shirtless owner of the Scrafty was grinning evilly, the unconscious body of Sergeant Forsyth at his feet with his hoodie; Looker swore he had never seen a Trainer look so much like their Pokemon. They must have been brothers, surely...

The youth looked down at Lottie with a grin like a hungry Sharpedo spotting a Goldeen stray into its lair. "Now now, little girl, you see what happens if you attack me! You end up like the old git here!" He pulled a knife from the belt around his mangy trousers. "Now, you're going to do what I say, or you're gonna get seriously hurt. Capiche?"

"Daddy!" Lottie squealed, oblivious to the fact that nobody was around. "Help! Somebody!"

"Don't you dare!" the youth hissed, gesturing with the blade. "You know what happens to naughty girls who don't do what they're told..."

Hamish, the little Herdier, started to yap loudly at the man's Scrafty, building up to a Roar attack, but the Hoodlum Pokemon noticed it, and with a Jump Kick battered Hamish away, knocking him out in one.

The youth grinned happily. "There! Much better! Now get down on your knees and do what you're told!"

"I don't think she will."

The youth froze at the sound of the click and the speaker behind him, and turned his head slowly yet defiantly. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Looker said, gesturing with the barrel of his Colt. "Detective Looker, International Police. Step away from the girl. That's Mayor Leeway's daughter, and if you harm a hair on her head you will kick up some serious..." He stopped himself from swearing in front of Lottie. "Serious poo in this city."

The youth laughing, a scraping, barking laugh. "Up yours, copper! I know she's the mayor's daughter, that's why I'm here! The ultimate prize, the ultimate bargaining chip to convince him to hand over his money!"

"I'm going to count to five before I shoot," Looker replied bluntly.

The youth grabbed Lottie and pulled her close to him. "I'm going to count to three before you piss off, or she dies! Your choice! Scrafty, get them!"

The Hoodlum grinned savagely, cracking its knuckles and advancing on Danny and Looker, springing up suddenly into a Hi Jump Kick...

Everyone suddenly blurred. Looker threw the Colt to Danny as his other hand went to his jacket, as the youth pulled back the knife to prepare for the stab. From within his coat Looker pulled something sharp, silver and stolen, and with one hand movement flicked it at the charging Scrafty, as Danny caught the pistol and as Croagunk shot forwards with a Poison Jab...

Looker gasped and sucked his cut fingers, blood oozing from his hands as the Scrafty collapsed in mid air, one of the Shadow's shuriken sticking from its chest, a bullet from Danny blowing a hole open between its eyes. "How do those guys throw these things?"

The youth wheezed and collapsed to the floor, Croagunk's Poison Jab to the groin hitting him hard, the knife clattering to the floor to roll away and be picked up by Danny. "Aagh shit!"

Looker turned and booted the falling youth in the chin, the impact knocking the hooligan out before he hit the deck, before he walked in, took Lottie's hand and led her away. "Danny, arrest this punk for assault, attempted rape and murder, swearing in public, attempted kidnapping, and..." He looked at the body of the dead Scrafty. "Littering."

Danny hauled the handcuffed youth to his feet, and smiled as he looked up at the HQ doors. "Here come the cavalry.."

Sure enough the rest of the team came charging through the automatic doors, descending on Danny and helping him drag the unconscious criminal towards the cells. Bastian helped a staggering Forsyth to his feet, but for Looker the highlight went to Mayor Leeway, who saw that his daughter was alright and charged towards her. "Lottie!"

"Daddy!" she screamed happily, throwing herself at him in a bear hug. "I was so scared!"

As father and daughter enjoyed their embrace, Looker's eyes met Aurelius', the overweight Commissioner breathing heavily from the long flights of stairs. "Glad you joined us, sir."

Aurelius waved him off. "We heard the commotion and were on our way down when we heard the gunshot. Are you and Detective Stamp...?"

Looker wrapped a piece of cloth around his bleeding fingers. "We are fine sir. I just need lessons on how to throw a shuriken."

Mayor Leeway prodded the Scrafty's dead body with his toe. "Boy, you sure did a good job there. Thank you, Looker. You are a true hero."

Alder smiled. "See, even if it isn't part of Team Plasma, Looker will hunt down criminals."

Looker nodded. "Thank you, both of you. And on the subject of Plasma pack your bags Police Officers. Ladies and gentlemen, Danny and I have located Bronius."

"What?!" Tash yelled. "No way! We didn't manage it with a computer!"

"Common sense works best," Danny said, returning outside with the rest of the team. "He's in the Chargestone Cave, where the interference played up with the phone call."

There was a collective 'Aah' as people worked it out, and Reece smiled. "That makes sense! What's the plan, Looker?"

"I'll discuss it on the way there," Looker said, graciously taking his suitcase of disguises and gadgets from Bastian. "Alder, are you in?"

The Champion nodded. "Of course! I wouldn't miss this for my title! But I'm afraid Grimsley and the others have already left- someone has to hold the fort while I'm out."

"Understandable," the Commissioner said, as Looker started to walk off towards the Police cars with the rest of the team. "Good luck, Looker."

"Wait! Looker!"

Looker turned at the sound of the squeal to be nearly flattened by a charging Lottie, who wrapped herself around his legs in a hug. "Woah, Lottie! Hey!"

"Thank you, Mister Looker," she said, shyly, quietly. "You saved me..."

"All in a day's work," he replied, ruffling her hair, trying to ignore the sniggers behind him. He normally didn't like small children, and this was seriously affecting the edgy, cool hero reputation that the Police thought he was like, but there was something cute about Lottie that made him feel more happy and bouncy. "I'd best be going now!"

She jumped up and kissed him on the cheek. "Good luck Looker! I'm rooting for you!"

"The Looker Fan Club," Matt said drily. "Oh dear."

Lottie beamed. "Yeah! The Looker Fan Club! I'll set that up for you Mister Looker! Go get them! Oh, and you too Croagunk!"

Looker shook his head in bemusement, and smiled at Robert's gracious, grateful, understated nod- doing a good deed and being thanked for it was a good feeling. "I wouldn't kiss him if I were you."

Hilbert grinned as the team started to get in the cars. "No, Croagunk excrete a lot of poison from their cheek sacs. Not the best idea."

Poking his head out of the window, Croagunk grinned, and blew little purple bubbles of poison from his cheeks, making Lottie giggle and hug her father's leg, smiling. "Gunk!"

Looker too grinned, despite the mickey-taking; he had never seen the normally sarcastic, grouchy Croagunk be so happy with a small child. And he had never had such thanks for something so small before- maybe he should do more things like that. "Let's roll folks. Chargestone Cave, here we come!"

As Reece eased the Police Lincoln out of its space and set off, followed by the other car, he looked in the mirror and smiled. "Your fan club is waving us off, boss. How cute..."

"Shut up and drive," Looker replied, but he was laughing too at the sight of the 8-year-old tottering after the car waving like mad. She soon disappeared from sight though, and Looker turned round in the passenger seat, facing forwards as Reece drove, settling back for the ride. Now it was time to get serious, now it was time to focus, to get back on the Team Plasma case. Because a meeting with Sage Bronius in the dark, crackling depths of the Chargestone Cave beckoned, and of all the things Looker had done so far in one day, he did not want to mess the crucial mission up. Sage Bronius was going down!

**A/N: And with that, the birth of the Looker Fan Club! :D Lottie Leeway belongs to The Mocking J, who won my competition as to which film the crane fight scene came from (Casino Royale. Great film). Thank you MJ for your great OC!**

**Next chapter- Finally, at long last, in the depths of the darkness of the Chargestone Cave... Sage Bronius! But will it be a case of cunning disguises, or will it be a full fledged battle, or will Bronius beat Looker at his own game? Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading! A review is always appreciated, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	15. Charge

**A/N: Well here we are folks! Overdue because of personal troubles and writer's block, but here I am, back with Chapter 15, so thanks for the patience! This makes The Chase my longest fanfic yet, you know :D**

**Last chapter we saw the introduction of Lottie Leeway and some good old-fashioned crime fighting from Looker, but it has all been buildup my friends, buildup to an epic battle. It is time for Looker to dig out the disguises and gadgets for Sage Bronius, but what surprises will Bronius spring, and what shocking facts will we learn about Looker's past?! :O on with the show...**

The Unovan day had been long and tiring, and slowly the calm blue skies over Castelia started to glow with the evening sunset. The pure white sun that had watched over Looker's pursuit of the Shadow and his take-down of the petty crook had become an orange flare of light on the far horizon, its light absorbed by the few pale clouds that hung in the sky, giving them a golden tint that shone and illuminated a lot of the nearby world. Watching Unova pass by in this new light was fascinating and beautiful.

Looker reflected on this, sat quietly in the passenger seat of the Police car as Reece drove it across the region towards their destination. It had been less than a week since he had arrived in Unova, and already he was starting to feel like he knew the place. He liked it, a lot more than the other regions- somehow there was a buzz, a vibrancy about the region that made it seem more alive. Couple that with a fantastic team to work with on a pretty good case, and Looker was enjoying himself.

He smiled as the car passed over the Driftveil Drawbridge, the golden light of the sunset glimmering on the water as the eye could see. It hadn't been that long since he had been chasing Ryoku across this bridge, after it had been broken by the Plasma Sage, but that somehow seemed like an age away. The Royal Unova's form was clearly visible as it steamed down the channel, its wake shimmering in the light, and Looker remembered vividly how close he had come to being crushed by the cruise ship, as Tash's demented boat driving in pursuit of Ryoku brought them as close to death as Looker had ever been. Fun times...

At almost exactly the same time as Croagunk's, his stomach rumbled loudly, the only noises in the otherwise-silent vehicle, and he looked embarrassed. "Wow that was loud..."

Hilbert grinned from the back seat, drumming his fingers on the window. "Jeez Looker. Way to break the silence."

"I wouldn't blame him to be honest," Reece said, his own stomach grumbling a little as he drove. "We haven't had any lunch, and our last meals were about 9 hours ago."

"Really?" Alder asked beside Hilbert, an eyebrow arched in surprise. "Aurelius doesn't even feed you?"

"We don't even have a canteen," Reece complained. "We have to go and get our own lunch from in the city, and even then we often don't have time."

"Well, look on the bright side folks," Looker said, delving into his bag, "I think I might have... yes, I do! Aha!"

Reece sighed happily as Looker pulled a package from the bag, the strong smell spreading throughout the car. "Ah that smells so good..."

"You brought a packed lunch?" Hilbert asked.

Looker smiled. "I always do. Everywhere I go, just in case. Today's special will be... I think it's meatball sandwiches. Croagunk?"

Croagunk nodded happily to confirm that fact, before passing the sandwiches around to everyone in the car, munching happily on them as Reece drove through the packed streets of Driftveil.

"Man, that's good," he said, wiping a streak of red tomato sauce from his cheek. "Thanks Looker!"

Looker smiled. "No problem. Glad you like them."

"Hmm... It appears the illustrious Detective's talents extend to sandwich making," Alder commented, finishing the sub off at unbelievable pace. "Is there anything you're not good at, Looker?"

Croagunk grinned evilly, writing down on a Post-It note the word 'Relationships' and passing it to the back, where Alder and Hilbert laughed.

"Thanks Croagunk," Looker said, shaking his head. "No, there are a lot of things I'm not very good at, Alder." His face lost its happy tone for a little while, and he looked a little weary. "My job used to be one of them..."

"I'm sorry?" Alder asked politely, his head tilted to one side, intrigued. "What do you mean, Looker?"

"Exactly what I said. The Looker you see now is not at all like the Looker of the past."

"Well, yeah," Reece reasoned. "Everyone is bad as a Police rookie, fresh out of the Academy. I'm ten times better now than I was..."

"I meant after the Academy... I meant during Galactic."

"Wait, what?" Hilbert asked, looking very confused.

"I haven't heard anything about this from Cynthia," Alder said. "In fact, all I've heard about you from other regions are glowing references of an incredibly talented and successful Detective."

"That's because they remember the improved Looker." Looker sighed. "Croagunk, shall I just stop beating round the bush and tell them straight and honestly?"

Croagunk paused solemnly, before slowly nodding. "Croa..."

"Okay. Well, when Croagunk and I left Police Academy, we did a few ordinary cases, nothing special. We got lucky on a couple of weird cases though, mystery-murder sort of cases, the kind that Sherlock Holmes solves where everything is so complex and intricate. After those cases, Inspector LaDieux believed I was ready for the big time, and, brimming with confidence that I could do it on my own, I accepted my first truly big case... The Team Galactic case."

"We all know how that one went though..." Reece said, looking worried.

Looker shook his head. "Not originally you don't. Originally I underestimated Galactic, and overestimated my own ability. I failed at stealth missions and blew my cover to two 12-year olds from Twinleaf Town, I failed to stop Galactic taking over the Valley Windworks (that success was all down to the Twinleaf Trainers), I only managed to stop the weakest Grunts on small theft missions, and I remained one step behind them at every interval."

"Really?" Alder asked, eyes wide.

"It's true. I never stood a chance taking down the Commanders, and had to leave that to the Twinleaf Trainers again. I would stumble into battle with Galactic and fail by underestimating them, and would fail to truly stop them by making stupid mistakes. To make things worse, the gadgets I was sent by the Police were shoddy, often breaking at the vital point- I never used the jetpack after I crashed it into Jubilife TV station- and even if they worked I was too reckless to read the instruction manual and didn't use them properly."

"So... the old you was..." Hilbert began.

"A poor Detective. Reckless, impulsive, brash, overconfident and a terrible planner. I rushed into everything, and it rarely worked. My relationship with Croagunk was tested to its very limits, as nothing seemed to go right. And then we got our wake up call." Looker steeled himself. "We were too late to stop Galactic... from detonating the Galactic Bombs."

There was a stunned silence in the Lincoln as it left Driftveil.

"No..." Reece breathed, finally.

Looker nodded sadly. "Eighty Pokemon died in the Great Marsh, and around twenty Magikarp died at Lake Valor. All because we didn't act in time. We didn't see it coming, and one hundred Pokemon died because we didn't find out about that horrible plan until too late." Then Looker looked angry and determined, a semi-growl emerging in his voice. "But they did one thing with that bomb that they would regret..."

"Go on..." Hilbert said.

Looker turned to him, the sunset light throwing dark and angry shadows beneath his eyes that burned with an intense fire. "They pissed me off. I was beside myself with rage for letting it happen, and I changed. The night of the Bomb blasts, old Looker died, replaced by new Looker. I planned, I prepared myself, and I was hungry for revenge. So I infiltrated their HQ, discovered their masterplan, and took action. Galactic were hunted down, defeated on Spear Pillar. But that wasn't the end for me. Then I went alone, without any support, and discovered Charon's secret plan, to raise Heatran and level Sinnoh. I used ingenuity and disguises, combined with Croagunk's increased strength, and we finally won. New Looker had triumphed at last, completing a mission that old Looker would have failed direly at, saving not just a region but a world." Looker paused and smiled at last. "It really feels good to say that..."

"I bet it does," said Alder thoughtfully. "I find it hard to believe though that the ace Detective sat in front of me, the man who has already saved one region and is saving another, used to be... well, almost a failure."

"Gunk," Croagunk said sagely, solemnly.

"We all have our dark days," Looker translated. "But some days are darker than others..."

"Don't blame yourself for the Galactic Bomb," Reece urged. "You can't beat everyone all the time..."

"Oh, I'm not kidding anyone. I fully blame myself. But I'm moving on from it, putting it behind me, trying to do as much good as I can to balance out my failures."

"A commendable attitude," Alder mused. "And from what I've seen, new Looker is certainly doing a lot of good against Team Plasma. They don't know what's hit them."

"Yeah.. It's actually weird how good you are," Hilbert added. "The best Trainers in Unova struggled to beat Plasma in one last epic battle, but now you're ripping through their ranks!"

Looker smiled. "They're certainly easier to deal with than Team Galactic, let me tell you that. I don't know whether my own improvements have changed that, but the battles with the Sages are much shorter than the battles with Galactic Commanders, and they appear to be easier to track down and arrest. The only difficulties were the Triad, who we had a stroke of luck with, Ghetsis, who we had already arrested, and the Plan. And I don't think their Plan is all that good; even if we don't know what it is yet I am confident they won't get to put it into action. Because we will arrest them all and stop them!"

"You are very confident in our success, Looker," Hilbert noted, Croagunk nodding beside him, surprised at his master's extraordinarily high confidence.

"Well, it certainly helps to have a lot more experience- Croagunk is stronger, and I know how to deal with a criminal mind much better than before. Plus there's the fact that I'm taking every step to get this right, not allowing anything to get in the way, AND there's the fact that I have a supremely brilliant team to back me up, one of the best working teams I've seen. I'm honoured."

"Stop it, you're making me blush," Reece joked. "Thank you Looker."

"No problem!"

"Hmm... Reece, why did the others just turn down a road to the left?" Alder asked evenly, peering out of the back window. "When we appear to still be heading to Mistaltron..."

Reece looked sheepish as he spun the wheel around, pulling a U-turn in the car as his eyes flashed yellow in embarrassment. "My bad! Should have kept my eyes on the road!"

"What was that about supremely brilliant, Looker?" Hilbert asked, grinning.

Looker rolled his eyes in mock exasperation. "Most of the time."

With Reece's mistake finally rectified, the Lincoln swung around the corner and eased to a halt beside the other car, the occupants sniggering at Reece's misfortune. As Hilbert, Reece and Alder got out to join Hilda, Tash, Matt and Bastian, Looker slowly climbed out, he and Croagunk the last to exit the vehicle, before looking at the gaping mouth of the cave that beckoned, the last hiding place of Sage Bronius... The Chargestone Cave. Even from outside the dark hole, stood on the dusty ground beside a huge boulder, you could feel a faint buzz in the air, a barely-audible whining crackle of static that your ears just about picked up at the very edge of hearing.

"This place is weird," Tash said, shaking her head. "The amount of electrical energy here is astonishing. It makes the rocks float!"

"Mount Coronet was like this," Looker replied, not looking at her. "It might not have had floating rocks, but Coronet's magnetic fields are so strong that Magneton and Nosepass can evolve there. It plays havoc with everything. Electrical equipment, hair..."

"And that daft old Kraut Sage Bronius has decided to hide in it," Reece said sardonically. "And we have to go in there..."

Looker nodded. "Three of you, Bastian, Hilda, Reece, cover the main exit. Make sure he doesn't get past- one of you should stay here and spread out across the Route, in case he makes it through."

"What about the rest of us?" Hilbert asked. "What's the plan?"

"The rest of you, cover me. Disperse and take up positions throughout the Cave. When we get to Bronius I have a plan, but you need to be ready for when the worst comes to the worst. Okay?"

"Got it," Matt answered, sticking his thumbs up. "I take it we're not going to use the tried-and-tested frontal assault tactic?"

"Nope. We have an even better advantage- surprise..."

**(***)**

Deep within the Chargestone Cave, the huge, wild and untamed electrical currents that were generated naturally surged and sizzled through the air, bolts of static earthing themselves on the rocks that floated in midair, suspended by strong magnetic fields. Only the hardiest (and dumbest) of Pokemon lived in such a treacherous environment, but past a large Galvantula web to the back there appeared to be an oasis of calm amidst the magnetic storm, and the new occupants of the Cave had put this to good use...

Sage Heinrich Bronius fiddled with the keyboard of a large laptop that was surviving in the small space where there was no current to affect it, deeply engrossed in what was on the screen. Beside him one Plasma Grunt stood resolutely on guard, watching out over the empty cavern, while another Grunt busied herself with a couple of tasks, going between unplugging wires and sorting equipment out into piles to put away and tapping away at another laptop keyboard beside Bronius. Nobody talked as they did this, no gossip, no idle chitchat; they would do their work efficiently and effectively, the only slight distraction being the cordless telephone that sat beside Bronius on a stationary boulder, the telephone that connected him to his company.

Under the blue glow of the floating stones, the male Grunt on guard duty frowned, suspicion visible in his piggy little eyes. "Something moved over there, sir."

"Ignore it," Bronius said in his thick German accent, his large Bavarian moustache quivering as he spoke. "A trifial distraction. Ve haf nearly completed the final steps of the Plan. Soon ve vill be out of here."

"But sir," the Grunt reasoned, "if one of those damn Galvantula spring a web on us, or if something tries to break our equipment while we finish off, we are ultimately finished. All of our work for nothing..."

Bronius sighed irritably. "Fine! Gott und Himmel! Go and check vot is going on! But be quick!" He glanced up at the female Grunt. "You too! Don't vorry, I shall finish votever it is you are doing myself."

The Grunts looked up at each other and after a quick pause nodded, getting up and walking away from Bronius towards the Galvantula web in the distance, stepping over a smashable rock as they did. They had had enough trouble as it was with the native Pokemon, who objected to the humans invading their home in often violent ways, and it was getting annoying having to continue fixing the equipment. They would never finish their part of the Plan this way...

Bronius huffed and settled back down typing for a few moments, before finishing his work. He nodded to himself in satisfaction, saving, sending, and closing down the documents/emails, but as he turned the laptop off with a click and went to shut the lid he heard a scuffle off in the distance, the frantic and rapid scraping of feet on the rocky floor. Oddly however he didn't hear any cries from the two Grunts as they fought off the native Pokemon with their own Pokemon- surely, he realised with mounting suspicion, they would be directing their Pokemon with verbal orders? "Dieter? Geli?"

"They won't be answering you. Not unconscious, anyway."

As soon as the first word from the mysterious voice came cutting through the charged silence like a saw, Bronius whipped around with surprising agility, one hand already on his belt. But as the Sage grasped one Pokeball, the smashable rock that the Grunts had stepped over sprang into life, leaping up from the floor and charging towards him to steal the rest of his Pokeballs with a yank. Trying to defend himself from the marauding rock, Bronius stumbled backwards, but it was too late; in a flash, all but one of his Pokemon had been stolen.

He paused in the half-darkness, lit only by the blue glow of the floating stones. "I knew something vas not right vhen I saw that damn rock."

There was a light laugh. "Too bad you didn't do something. Croagunk is a master of disguise, and he beat you."

Bronius smiled humourlessly. "Then you are Looker. Vot a pleasant surprise. Especially surprising that you tracked me down here..."

"It wasn't hard. When you answered the company phone call to Bruce Dance, it made things a lot easier."

"Vot?" Bronius asked, stunned. "You vere Dance? Vell I am impressed, mein Freund. Superbly resourceful to trace my call like that, especially vith the static."

"That made it easier."

Bronius shifted uneasily. "Vhere are you, Looker? I vould prefer to speak to my nemesis face to face, as it vere..."

Slowly, about ten metres across the cavern from the German, one of the boulders started to unfurl, and Bronius realised that a) that particular boulder didn't glow itself, merely reflecting the light of the others, and b) that particular boulder hadn't been there last time he had looked. Slowly the fabric started to unfurl, legs and arms developing, before one man stepped out of the fabric bulk of the costume to stand beneath a pulsing rock, his jacket illuminated in the blue light...

Looker nodded, as Croagunk hopped up onto his shoulder and handed him the Sage's stolen Pokemon. "Good day, Sage Bronius. Champion Alder, if you would be so good as to take these Pokeballs off me to free my hands up..."

"Alder?" Bronius asked, stunned, before looking anxious and worried as the Champion stepped out from behind a rock pillar to take the Pokeballs off of Looker silently. "Scheiße."

Looker smiled, noting how Bronius' grip tightened on his solitary Pokeball through anxiety. "That's what I thought. Now then..." Croagunk handed something down to him, and he pointed it at Bronius. "The odds are highly stacked against you here, Bronius. One Pokemon against an entire Police force, you have no chance to escape, and now I'm pointing this at you. Surrender now, or I will knock you out with it. It's that simple."

Bronius rolled his eyes. "Mein Freund, that is a tin can. That is one of the most pathetic veapons I haf efer seen. I vouldn't mind threats at gunpoint, but this? You couldn't knock a Caterpie out vith that!"

"Fine," Looker said evenly. "If you don't want to surrender, if you want me to actually use this highly-specialised Police device, fine. I warned you."

"Vait a moment, vot..." Bronius began, but it was too late. Looker pulled the trigger...

"Nothing. See, I told you," Bronius complained, "do it properly or not at all."

Looker shook his head, slamming his hand against the side of the device. "I guess I never used this after Sinnoh because it didn't work."

"Here, let me..." Alder began, but as Looker handed it over the device's delayed reaction kicked in, and a large boxing glove erupted from within the device to strike Alder in the nose with a sickening crunch.

Bronius' face didn't twitch into the slightest smile as the Champion reeled, his nose starting to bleed. "I vonder sometimes about the safety of our region in the hands of the so-called 'good guys'..." He paused to throw his Pokeball. "But I guess that doesn't matter, fur mich..."

"Sorry Alder," Looker apologised, as a Rhyperior erupted out into the midst of the cave with a bellow that echoed throughout the underground.

The Champion pushed him away, handing Looker back the gadget and grasping for his own Pokeball. "Don't worry! This Sage is mine, Looker! Accelgor, wipe him out!"

Alder's Bug-type ninja-like Pokemon emerged on the field in a blur, its incredible speed allowing it to run rings around the bulky Rhyperior. Suddenly though the Rhyperior lunged forward, a huge fist powering forward to slam a Hammer Arm into Alder's Pokemon with incredible force, almost squashing the Bug-type. If not for Accelgor's sheer speed it would have been crushed- as it was, it was severely damaged.

As the battle flared up suddenly, Looker found himself cursing his bad luck. He'd been cocky, tried to use a gadget that would never work, and now Alder had been dragged into a battle with a formidable foe who was not only matching but out-doing the region's Champion. He needed to stop Bronius... And then it came to him.

"Team, close the exits! Croagunk, support Accelgor and get that Rhyperior down! Hilbert, Reece, Hilda, cover me!"

Looker set off at a run across the cavern, but his path was treacherous and he had to be superbly alert. Not only were attacks flying around in an enclosed space, but with every move the brute Rhyperior made the floor shook violently, nearly sending Looker lurching into the floating charged stones whose currents would kill if he touched them. The bottleneck cave, seemingly an ideal place to corner Bronius, had become a death trap..

Somehow it appeared to Looker that every Sage of Team Plasma had a brute Pokemon on their team, an impossibly strong creature that could absorb almost anything. Zinzolin had Drapion, Gorm had had Cloyster, and now Bronius had a monster Rhyperior that moved ten times as fast as any Rhyperior he'd seen. Mixing deadly Ground-type vibrations with powerful physical moves and its own projectiles, somehow it had already taken down Reshiram with a stunning Rock Wrecker, along with Reece's Porygon-Z, and it seemed to be able to shake off almost every super-effective attack launched at it.

Looker dodged a wayward Energy Ball from Accelgor, the original attacker of Rhyperior, as he neared his destination. Bronius was fixed on the battle, a smile on his lips as without orders his Pokemon took everything the Police had to offer before striking back. He hadn't noticed Looker sneak away from the group, but he would do; Looker's time was running out. He had to act, now!

Grabbing the failed boxing glove projectile from the floor, he slipped as he tried to pick it up and nearly fatally faceplanted one of the charged rocks littered around the place. As an errant bolt of static zapped him and sent his fringe into a spasm, he glared at a sniggering wild Galvantula, seemingly unharmed as it wove its web between two of the rocks, before slamming the glove back into the device that shot it. "Please, please, I beg of you, work..." Hr started to dash forward, but even despite the tremors and speed his arm remained steady, his aim fixed as he clicked the trigger. "Hey Bronius!"

Shocked at the sound of Looker's voice behind him, the Sage wheeled frantically, his Rhyperior too absorbed in pummelling Accelgor into a wall with a Poison Jab to care. "Looker!"

Then it worked. Then the delayed reaction kicked in, and sent the heavy boxing glove shooting out of the gadget at long last, bound for the correct destination at an awesome velocity. Bronius was hit square between the eyes by the glove, the forceful impact sending him reeling, his eyes glazing over a little as he stumbled; you could practically see the stars spinning around his head.

But Looker wasn't done. As the glove hit home he continued charging, running straight at Bronius and diving at the Sage in a flying tackle any rugby player would be proud of. The Sage was taken off-guard, and he toppled with Looker, collapsing at the knees until his head hit home hard on the stony floor, his eyes glazing over for real this time.

Just to be sure, Looker punched the unconscious Sage in the nose, satisfied with the crack, before hauling Bronius to his feet and handcuffing him anyway as a precaution.

"And I think that's a takedown," he announced to nobody in particular, wiping his hand on his jacket where some blood from a gash on Bronius' head had gathered. "Mission successful, team." He looked up...

Into the growling face of a very pissed-off Rhyperior. "Oh shit."

"Rhy PER!" The angry Pokemon yelled, furious at the injuries to its master, before it drew an arm back for another stunning Hammer Arm to crush its enemy...

A blur blasted past Looker though and before Rhyperior could begin its swing down, Croagunk launched up to hit the Drill Pokemon with a Rock Smash to the face, just below its impressive horn. Rhyperior's response was to bellow like an oncoming freight train, before the Hammer Arm intended for Looker smashed into Croagunk with supreme force, sending him spinning through the air across the cave into one of the blue glowing rocks.

"CROAGUNK!" Looker yelled frantically, panicking at the sight of his best friend/partner/Pokemon jerking in spasms as vicious currents of electricity surged their way through him. It was one of the duller rocks in the area, and probably wasn't lethal, but even so an obscene amount of energy was ripping into his partner, and he was helpless to stop it, as Rhyperior grinned savagely...

But Croagunk stopped, suddenly. No more did his body shake. Instead, still glued to the rock, he put his finger to his lips and shushed Looker, as he started to smile unnervingly at the Rhyperior, and as an orange aura started to coalesce around him...

"Croa... GGGGGGGGGUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNKKKK KKK!"

Looker's mouth dropped open in awe as Croagunk's Revenge attack flew through the air, fearfully strong waves of Fighting-type energy smashing into Rhyperior, even cracking the armour of the Drill Pokemon. By allowing himself to be damaged by the currents, Croagunk had built up more and more power until he unleashed an unstoppable wave of energy against Bronius' Pokenon, and that wasn't the best bit- the best bit was that as the KOed Rhyperior collapsed to the floor in a long, slow descent with a heavy tremor, Croagunk grinned, and bit down on a Sitrus Berry, restoring his health a little. Even with low amounts of health left, Croagunk had survived. And Croagunk had won!

"Bloody hell, Looker," Alder said, holding one of Tash's tissues to his nose as he came over to stand beside him, looking down at the Rhyperior. "How strong is your Croagunk?"

Croagunk smiled weakly. "Croa..."

"Thankfully, strong enough," Looker replied. "Although that's twice now he's performed a risky move that could have killed himself to help us win. I would prefer it if he didn't do that in future, and if we didn't risk lives..."

"And if the Sages actually didn't try to fight us," Matt said, hauling Bronius to his feet. "One who gave up or ran away would be nice. New, certainly."

"One who didn't have a ridiculously strong brute Pokemon on their team would also be good," Hilda added, as Reece poked the massive form of the Ground/Rock type with a foot. "What're we going to do with him?"

"I vote leave him here," Tash said viciously. "He nearly beat us, and I think the Pokemon in here are itching to get at him and Bronius for invading their home."

Looker clicked the Pokeball in Bronius' hand as a response, returning Rhyperior. "Whether you like it or not, we can't do that, as much as I want to. He's evidence, and I won't hear the end of it from Aurelius if we leave evidence to be hung up in an Electroweb and eaten by Galvantula."

"Ah, never mind Tash," Hilbert said, grinning. "We've won! We've beaten Sage Bronius."

Looker smiled too as the group neared the exit to the cave, the full moon now clearly visible in a now-night sky that shone with hopeful and bright stars. "Too right Hilbert! Four Sages down! Rood and Giallo had better watch out, because we are coming for them!"

**A/N: That's my man Looker. Even when up against faulty gadgets and a beastly Rhyperior you and Croagunk pull through :D and now that means 4 Sages down! We are getting there!**

**Next chapter- saying goodbye? Perhaps. Talking to Aurelius? Yes. Mysterious phone calls? Of course. And saying hello to another Sage... well let's just wait and see, shall we? :) coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading folks! A review is always appreciated, and until next time adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	16. The Art of Conversation

**A/N: I'm back at last. Personal problems are still ongoing, but at least tomorrow my exam will be out of the way and will stop preventing me from writing. Never mind though- Chapter 16 is up! :D and my my, Looker is on a roll! 4 Sages down already! But now Plasma start to come into play a lot more, as Looker and Ghetsis continue their mind games with each other, and as something worrying comes to light Unova will never be the same again! Anyway, on with the show...**

Somewhere in Unova, a phone rang...

"Yes?" came the clipped, precise, almost too perfect voice, in an emotionless tone.

"Sage Bronius was arrested last night in the Chargestone Cave by Detective Looker, taken out in a surprise ambush attack."

There was a lengthy pause on the other end until, with slightly ragged breath, the voice came back. "So we are the last two Sages left?"

"Indeed, it would appear that way."

The other end of the line seemed to crackle as the person sighed. "Why me though? I mean, why? Why does HE," the word was spat with such venom, "prove such an irritant?!"

"By 'he' I am sure you mean 'Detective Looker'," came the calm reply. "And yes, it is unfortunate that Bronius has been taken captive- he was, after all, our field director, organising from the Cave our administration and our army."

"And yet I am the one who remains free and at large..." The voice faded, to come back almost instantly, only this time the falsified precise tone had evaporated, replaced by a rich Italian accent cracked with stress. "Eet does not make sense!"

"Calm yourself, brother," the other voice reassured him. "You are, after all, our strongest- Looker would have had to leave you and I, the strongest and most influential Sages, until the end. It's just how he works."

"Si, but..."

The outburst was cut off however. "AND ALSO, don't forget that ultimately the order does not matter."

"... Si..." You could almost hear the head hang in embarrassed shame.

"What matters is that there are now only two of us Sages left. And two stages left for our Plan..." The speaker made a little noise, as if suddenly smirking or smiling. "And Looker remains clueless..."

"Two stages... Heh, how fortunate for us. And you say Looker has no idea?"

"None at all. He foolishly believes that he has our Plan worked out; he arrogantly believes that he will be the end of us. Alder and the Elite Four couldn't take us down, and neither could the Undella Trainers- even with their help Looker will have no hope."

"And of course, Looker weell have had his ideas further twisted by the emergence of certain... evidence, shall we say? I have heard about Ryoku's blueprints.."

"That was not intentional for him to discover those!" snapped the other caller. "I intended for those to remain hidden. But... I suppose if it complicates Looker's theories and distracts him, it shall do."

"Si, but even so, what about your fake speech about spleetting from Ghetsis, and getting Gorm to join een? Looker weell actually wonder whether he can get you on hees side, and all the while eet deestracts heem from figuring out the true Plan, hmm?"

"Yes..." came the voice, trying to disguise a little awkwardness. "Fake... speech. That... shall confuse him."

"Si! Anyway..." The precise edge returned. "So what is the plan now? Obviously you will remain at large until the end, my friend..."

"Indeed, it is necessary for me to be last to complete my mission... It is time then for your last stand, my friend." There was a pause. "I trust you have a plan?"

"Of course. I am laying a trail, hidden beneath the surface, that will so obvious to follow that even the Police will not fail to work it out and follow it. One location, out in the public, where the Police's secret battle against a no-longer dead Team Plasma will be exposed. If the media jump on it, the coverup will come under fire, and fear will grip Unova. After all..." There was a snigger. "We have come back from the dead."

"Do not fight him, whatever you do."

The shocked silence descended.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You are as stunned as Looker will be. Trust me- Looker has been in battles with three of our brethren, and expects you, the strongest, to follow suit. By not engaging him in battle you will throw a spanner in the works, causing him to rethink his tactics, and throwing further doubt on what our Plan actually is. And besides, it'll make your mission, your last and vital contribution to the Plan, go all the more easily..."

"I see." The speaker paused. "I guess I shall see you on the other side, my friend. All of us are counting on you to succeed, for us. For Plasma..."

"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Concentrate on your mission, and get it done for our Team."

"Long live Team Plasma."

"Long may we reign..." The phone clicked off, for the last time...

**(***)**

Castelia had descended into the epitome of dullness. The new day had brought absolutely nothing to the city in the form of weather- no sun, no sleet, no storm, no heat, nothing. The grey clouds had simply bubbled up and formed a protective cocoon around the metropolis, boredom enveloping each and every one of the city's inhabitants. It just had the feeling of one of those days that would drag on and on and on, endless, the people willing their clocks forward to get this day finished and out of the way.

Looker however wasn't one of those people. When the days grew weary and monotonous for most, and when seconds seemed to pass with the speed of treacle, Looker used the time. Every second was crucial, valuable time, vital to helping himself and the team. And today was no exception...

He drummed his fingers on the table in the interviewing room as if trying to think, his lips moving silently for a few moments as he pieced something together. Then, as Croagunk sighed, and as the rest of the team, scattered around the room and leaning on the walls, started to fidget a little, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and assuming a thoughtful pose, the thumb of his left hand touching his right cheek and the index finger stroking his chin as his other fingers tucked beneath his chin...

Sat imperiously and haughtily across from Looker on the other side of the table, tapping his foot impatiently, Ghetsis Harmonia looked irritated, his red eyes emanating an annoyed air as he drew himself up to his full height. "Well? Will that be all, Looker? Have you wasted your time enough now?"

Hilda shifted a little as she leant against the wall. "He's still thinking, processing what you've said. Or haven't said, as the case may be..."

"I think that's more likely," Danny, loitering by the door, said sourly. "You haven't really told us anything, have you Ghetsis?"

"How can we fill in the gaps like this?" Reece asked aloud, as if complaining.

As Ghetsis shrugged indifferently Looker finally leaned forward to speak. "Sometimes silence speaks for itself Reece."

Ghetsis rolled his eyes. "At last, the great Detective speaks. Tell me then, Looker, what are you thinking?"

"I'm wondering how we can get this investigation to go anywhere. Since we brought him in last night Bronius has remained in a silent sulk that rivalled Zinzolin's when we dented his pride. He refuses to tell us anything as to what he was doing."

"As you would," Alder said evenly. "I wouldn't expect a criminal to answer questions."

Looker nodded. "Regardless, as much as I regret it I have had to come to you to talk, Ghetsis. To try to piece a few things together about Bronius and perhaps even about the other Sages. And all you've told us is that Bronius used to be good friends with our Commissioner Aurelius when the two went to school together..."

"Peer support," Ghetsis said, nodding. "Bronius looked out for the younger kid, helping him with homework and bullies. Imagine therefore the shock of your Commissioner when he led the raid on our secret hideout in this very city, to discover that his noble friend, a world-famous businessman, had became a leader of a strong criminal organisation."

"That is exactly what you said. And yet I don't see how that gossip helps us in the slightest," Hilbert said, with a hint of frustration to his voice.

"It does not. It is, after all, completely irrelevant."

"But.."

Ghetsis held up a hand imperiously. "You asked me to tell you about Bronius. And I did. Whether it was relevant or not was not stipulated."

"He obviously prefers the direct approach of questioning," Tash commented drily, Croagunk nodding in agreement.

Looker nodded. "Fine. What exactly was Bronius' responsibility within the organisation of Team Plasma?"

Ghetsis clapped sarcastically. "At last, a decent question to answer, getting straight to the point. Bronius is very clever, and so was what we called the 'Field Director'- it was his job to supervise operations of all Sages. If anything went wrong, he sent in intervention, and reported to me on the success of the others' operations. He was also in charge of directing the Grunts that we have, and casts an eye over every piece of administrative work that we have."

Looker arched an eyebrow. "An important character then, in the story of Team Plasma?"

"Very." Ghetsis smiled humourlessly. "See, an answer to a question. Ask me directly and you might succeed a little more."

"Time to ask the big questions then!" Reece said, determinedly. "What is Team Plasma's great Plan then, the Plan that all the Sages seem to be aware of, the Plan that we haven't asked you about yet?"

The soulless smile remained on Ghetsis' face but his eyes became a little glassy for a moment. "..."

"He has a point Looker," Alder said smoothly. "We haven't asked him anything about that Plan yet. Reece's suggestion of question is..."

"A silly one!"

Croagunk glared at Ghetsis, who glowered back sullenly. "Croa..."

Looker however smiled cheerfully. "Was that you snapping, Ghetsis? Lose your cool for an instance, did you? Well, I wonder why? Somebody knows more about it than they've put on before, don't they?"

Ghetsis tutted. "Preposterous. You actually believe I will let down my team and tell all to you about our secret Plan. I've heard what some of your ideas are, and frankly if you get it in the next hundred years I shall be astonished..."

"...!" Hilbert looked shocked. "H-how does he know what we think?"

Having seemed to have been in a slumber for most of the questioning (in reality he was actually quite a quiet, shy person, despite his gruff exterior), the great hulk of Bastian lurched upright. "Huh? That? Oh, I told him. Ran a few ideas past him, to see if I could get a reaction. Nothing yet."

Ghetsis rolled his piercing red eyes. "I must say, I was slightly amused by the theory that we were all gathering here in Castelia to get to a safe bunker to shield ourselves from a nuclear winter that we would unleash all across Unova. Even if that wasn't a serious guess at our Plan, what do you think I would gain in the way of profits and satisfaction from Armageddon?"

Looker shook his head, swinging between bemused and embarrassed. "Well, you know, despite all our previous guesses, I think we're pretty certain about this theory."

"We have another theory?" Danny asked sardonically.

Looker nodded, and passed a sheet of paper across the table to an uninterested Ghetsis. "Here. You may be familiar with these blueprints. They are for a machine designed by the late scientist Colress Achroma that converts energy of Pokemon attacks into electrical energy."

Ghetsis waved a hand dismissively, suddenly starting to look very angry as he drew up his robes. "Bah! You're grasping at straws Looker, a desperate man, and I can tell it! You don't know anything about the Plan at all, or else you wouldn't be bringing up blueprints from a long-dead scientist's doomed project, that are completely irrelevant and are wasting my time!"

"OBJECTION!"

Ghetsis actually leapt back a little in shock, his resolve broken as Looker's fist slammed down on the table while one outstretched finger at the tip of his outstretched arm pointed accusingly at the now-enraged Plasma leader. "WHAT?! You dare shout at me, Ghetsis Harmonia, like some spiky-haired rookie lawyer?!"

Looker ignored the jibe. "If you had read this evidence Ghetsis you would see how this is relevant. These may be Colress' designs, but they were found in Ryoku's work desk... bearing the Team Plasma crest!"

Ghetsis took a deep breath, trying to suppress the rage glowing in his red eyes. "Yes? So what? What relevance does this machine have to us?"

"I'm coming to that," Alder replied calmly. "After all, this is my theory... And no doubt you are familiar with the machine built in your Castle, the machine that when activated would have released every PC-stored Pokemon in Unova, the machine that was never activated?"

"Of course. That is, after all, my machine." Then it hit Ghetsis. "Ah..."

Looker nodded. "You've worked it out then? The PC machine was never activated partly due to your defeat at the hands of Hilbert over there, but in any case the power supply to it failed. Thus, we come to the conclusion that you are reconstructing the energy machine in order to power your theft of every Pokemon in Unova, and that your Sages are doing it for you!"

There was a lengthy pause. Croagunk used it to attempt to light up a cigarette.

Ghetsis smirked. "Close..." He pinched the cigarette. "But no cigar. That was a possibility for us, I shall admit, and it is hard for me to admit things like this to an arrogant Detective. But you are wrong; you haven't seen the flaws."

"Flaws?" Hilda asked uneasily.

Ghetsis nodded triumphantly, taking a puff on the cigarette. "Why would these blueprints be in the possession of Ryoku, and not myself or Bronius? Why would the Sages constructing this infernal engine not hold the designs themselves? Because we found a flaw with them, the flaw that led to the downfall of Colress... a fatal, unreversable design flaw that will not be overcome."

"You're kidding..." Reece said despairingly.

"I'm serious. The machine cannot safely store up energy- above a certain low energy level, it explodes. And if a genius scientist couldn't fix that, how can we? I'm sorry," it was obvious he was stifling a smile as he said this, "but the Plan of Team Plasma does not include the use of this death trap device."

Looker stacked his papers neatly, before beckoning at the door, the wizened old Sergeant Forsyth hobbling in ready to escort Ghetsis back to his cell. "Never mind. The machine notwithstanding, we are making serious progress with this investigation. It is only a matter of time." He looked up to stare at Ghetsis. "And I promise you Ghetsis, no matter what this Plan of yours is, I will not allow Team Plasma to execute it and harm even more. Because we will hunt down and arrest the last Sages, bring you to justice and remove the threat of your shameful organisation forever."

Ghetsis' head tilted up until his gaze appear to cooly meet Looker's, but only to Looker was the deep passion and fire in those eyes visible. "I look forward to hearing how you get on with that, Looker. Good day."

As Bastian and Forsyth led the Plasma leader out of the interviewing room, the team remained silent, reflecting on how the questioning had gone until the door slid shut...

Croagunk's frustrated Poison Jab hit the wall at the exact same time as Reece's punch.

"Dammit!"

"GUNK CROA!"

Looker sighed deeply, taking in a deep breath and trying to calm himself. "Close one, team..."

"Yeah, at least we got him to answer one question at last," Alder added, but his words fell on deaf ears.

"I was sure that was going to it!" Tash complained. "I really thought that was their Plan, revealed at long last..."

"It's never that easy," Danny replied bitterly. "I guess I'll just go back to investigating Paperweightgate then. No more guesses for me..."

"And as for the rest of us," Hilbert said, as the team slowly left the room and headed back down the corridor into the lobby to get back to work, "we should get back to tracking down Sages. We only have two left to get now..."

"Actually, if we play our cards right now and have a successful day, we have only one Sage left."

Looker turned at the sound of Matt's voice, slightly puffing as he left the elevator clutching some printed-out documents. "Matt, where were you during questioning?"

"Busy," came the reply, as Matt got his breath back. "You told me to monitor everything computer-based in Unova for hits on Team Plasma, to make sure nothing would slip through unnoticed. And while you were talking to Ghetsis I made a little breakthrough."

The mood of the assorted team members suddenly went from miserable to optimistic within a heartbeat.

"You have?" Tash asked, a faint smile on her face.

Matt nodded. "Purchases, buying and selling from credit cards, bank transfers, all centred around a house, a villa in Undella Town. I've been monitoring all property sales by Zinzolin's real estate company, and this one stood out. The property in question, as of a day ago, is registered to one Alessandro Giallo."

"Sage Giallo..." Reece grinned like a Sharpedo. "We have him at last..."

Hilbert however frowned. "That's a bit lax for a fugitive criminal. How can we be sure it isn't a trap?"

"We can't," Matt replied simply. "But whatever this trail is, Giallo lies at the end of it. This camera shot," a printed photograph was handed to Looker, "was taken in the Pokemon Centre, and the PC webcam registered another facial match," another photo went to Tash, "on Giallo. Plus, satellite images show in the last two days that some sort of red car has parked itself at the property, and hasn't left Undella; the registration can be traced to Giallo. It is him! He is in Undella!"

"Then we go to Undella," Looker murmured, before turning and raising his voice. "You heard him team. We head to Undella Town! I know that this could be a trap- there could still be the possibility that Giallo wants us to come to him, or that he has thrown out a red herring and isn't actually there. But we must investigate this lead."

Tash nodded. "Be wary people. Giallo is by far and away the strongest of the Sages in Pokemon battle; he was the man predicted to become Johto League Champion before the movement for independent leagues collapsed. He is a tough customer, so be prepared. Let's hit him hard, and with surprise!"

There was a general chorus of 'yeah's from the team, and Tash and Reece left to go and get the cars, but a deep and sonorous voice spoke up suddenly from the back. "I regret to inform you all however that my participation here is drawing to a close."

"Huh?" Hilda turned. "Champion Alder, what do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said," Alder said calmly. "As League Champion, I cannot abandon my duties much longer, even when in pursuit of criminals who threaten my region. I must return to my post, to watch over the region, and I must do my duties. Technically I was supposed to be back this morning..."

"Well," Matt said, uncertainly, "I'm sure we could cope without you against Giallo, if you want to return. It'd be tough, I know, but..."

Alder grinned. "Don't be so eager to be rid of me, Matt Damon. As Champion I am due in Undella at lunchtime today to hold discussions with Cynthia, Sinnoh Champion. I was headed there anyway, so I can definitely come along to help with one last Sage." His grin widened. "And besides, I've been wanting to battle Giallo for a while now. It'll be fun!"

Looker smiled. "Well then, you're welcome to come and help us out with Giallo, if that is the case. We shall accompany you to your meeting with Cynthia in turn- its been a while since I've seen her.."

Hilbert clapped his hands together. "Right then! Time to move out and get the endgame started! Team Plasma are going down!"

Buoyed up with confidence, the team headed through the automatic glass doors of the Police HQ, ready to face the penultimate challenge and take down Giallo once and for all. But as the two Lincoln Towncars, driven by Tash and Reece, pulled up in front of the building...

"EEEEEEKKKK! IT'S HIM!"

"OMG I CAN SEE HIS CROAGUNK!"

"THERE HE IS! OH MY DAYS IT'S LOOKER!"

Suddenly the Police team were swamped by a sea of pink T-shirts and, oddly enough, long brown trenchcoats. Cloth banners and wooden signs were waving frantically from the small horde of young children and teenagers, all of them clamouring for the attention of one person...

"LOOKER SIGN MY SHIRT!"

"OH MY GOD HE JUST TOUCHED ME! DID YOU SEE THAT? HE JUST TOUCHED ME!"

"HE IS SO HANDSOME IN REAL LIFE!"

"...What the actual hell?" Looker muttered, stunned by the wall of noise as Reece forced his way through the crowd to grab Looker and pull him into the safety of the Lincoln, but even then young hands scrabbled at the windows to try and get at him.

"What on Earth was that?" Alder asked in a level tone of voice. "I didn't know you were a celebrity as well as a Detective, Looker..."

"Croa..." Croagunk murmured, scarred by the sudden onslaught towards him, frightened as to what the many hands that had tried to grab him wanted.

"Did you see that?" Reece said, accelerating away rapidly from the crowd as it tried to chase them through the streets of Castelia. "That girl, the Mayor's daughter, the one you saved from the thug? She was there!"

A horrible sinking feeling hit Looker at the realisation as to why Lottie Leeway would be there. "Oh no..."

Hilbert grinned on the back seat beside Alder, flicking through his Xtransceiver. "Oh yes. You'll never guess what Facebook page, set up yesterday, has risen to astronomical fame, with over ten thousand likes?"

"She actually set up a Looker Fan Club, didn't she?" Looker groaned.

Alder nodded, suppressing a smile. "It seems there's a lot of stories about you here Looker. People talking about your personality, your missions... You're getting very popular."

Looker buried his head in his hands as the laughs grew in volume from the back seat, as Hilbert and the Champion read increasingly far-fetched rumours and embarrassing romantic anecdotes from teenage fangirls out loud. Croagunk's face beside him had gone bright red, his cheek sacs swelling as he cringed- this wasn't why they had come to Unova. They wanted to beat Team Plasma, to ensure a region's safety, and it appeared that in coming to Unova they had bitten off more than they could chew.

All Looker could hope for now after the embarrassment was that the mission against Giallo would succeed. Otherwise he'd never live this day down...

**A/N: Haha, Looker you poor man! Now you become a celebrity! :D and a little Ace Attorney reference too. Just because I'm also fighting addiction to that game :L**

**Next chapter- has Giallo sprung a trap? Will Looker's reunion with an old friend go as planned? And will Tash prove her worth as a pursuit specialist? Coming soon...**

**Thanks for reading! A review is always appreciated, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


	17. Campioni

**A/N: Wow this took a while. After me promising to get my writing back on track, I screw up with block and miss my update schedule by two whole weeks. That's awkward :( I'm back though folks! Big chapter 17 in my longest fic! :D**

**Last chapter we saw the introduction of the real Looker Fan Club (how embarrassing), as well as the return of the terrifically terrifying Ghetsis Harmonia, and the unmasking of Rood and Giallo as the phone callers, as Plasma's plan starts to swing into gear and as Looker and the team head to Undella Town to arrest Giallo... I wonder how that will go? And how a new arrival to the team fits in? :) On with the show...**

Unova astounded Looker. It really did. When the team had departed Castelia in convoy, heading out to the east coast in order to head Sage Giallo off and arrest him in Undella Town, the clouds had taken over everything. The entire sky had been filled with a massive bank of them, a huge wall of dismal grey that loomed over the region threatening it with all sorts of horrible weather. A shadow had fallen on the cities and towns, on what seemed to be a dreary, rotten, boring day. But not on this side of Unova...

Having sped onto Route 14, the Police cars had finally broken through the darkness, and had discovered how beautiful Unova could be when the weather was good. Up and down the hills of Route 14 they drove, headed towards Undella Town, surrounded by the most astonishing panoramic views Looker had ever seen. The light glistened on the surface of a shimmering blue sea that appeared almost crystalline, like liquid sapphire, and the crisp golden sand shone in a long line on the horizon, as all the while luscious, verdant green woods lined the Route in a thick deciduous wall. The horrible clouds now seemed only a memory, a speck in the rear-view mirror; now, a beaming Undella beckoned..

Thankfully for Looker, now that the weather had picked up, the team had something to talk about other than giving him banter about the recently established 'Looker Fan Club'. Hilbert had been exaggerating a lot about its popularity- it only appeared to be a newly established page with a gaggle of Castelia teens (the same who had mobbed the team at HQ) and some Sinnoh faces liking it- but sure enough it was there. Posts about what he'd done to help Lottie, how he'd 'saved' the region, how he had helped some people he'd never heard of by doing some preposterous things he'd never done (some of them were quite funny and imaginative though)... It was all there. The 'Looker Fan Club'. Absolutely ridiculous. Celebrities maybe, but a Detective? A guy who just fights crime because its his job? Looker's train of thought went through all these stations and more, but now he was trying to get it out of his head.

He leaned forward as conversation between Reece and Hilbert turned to the sea, the large and sublime waves that rippled in towards the golden sand and provided perfect surfing conditions. "Alright you two, concentrate now. You know why we're here..."

Alder, who had been surprisingly quiet and reflective throughout the entire trip, snapped out of it, nodding slowly. "Yes... It's time to arrest Sage Giallo.."

Looker clapped. "Exactly! We aren't here in Undella Town to have a holiday, to surf and have a barbecue! We're here for work, and I'm not letting Giallo get out of here, now we've cornered him."

"I hear you Looker," Reece said, changing down a gear and patting the two Pokeballs on his belt. "Giallo's the strongest of the Sages in battle, apparently, so I've come prepared for battle! He won't get away!"

Hilbert smiled. "And I've healed up all of my Pokemon too. Full PP, full health, no status issues... I'm ready to face him." He paused. "Is it true he was going to be a Pokemon League Champion?"

"Indeed," Alder spoke up. "Supposedly he would be the top Trainer in Johto if they got their own League. A pity I never got the chance to face him..."

"A pity you won't today," Reece said, as the Lincoln approached Undella's outskirts. "You said you'd tag along with us here to get to your meeting with Sinnoh Champion Cynthia, right?"

"Right," Alder said. "But since your Sage is here, I'll join forces with you to take him down too." He smiled. "Let's head to Cynthia's and park there. After all, we have to start somewhere..."

As it cruised into the town centre, the Police convoy rattled their way over dusty roads covered in sand that had blown in from the beach's expansive dune network and blanketed everything. There was some extreme heat in the air, sweltering heat that formed spectacular mirages, and the Lincolns were soon caught in a large crowd of sweating, tanned people in swimwear and summer-wear heading between the beach and the town centre, but there was a real vibrancy to Undella, a hum in the air, almost as if the town was swinging into party season early. The best word to describe it, with loud and happy music blaring from speakers mounted on the colourful villas, with a gorgeous beach and a throng of surfers and sunbathers, with delicious smells of barbecued meat hanging in the air, was a fiesta. Undella was alive.

"This is it."

The silence was broken by a pointing Alder, and Reece eased the Lincoln to a halt outside one of the large villas, parking opposite the Pokemon Centre which seemed to be thriving in the heat, many customers seeking shade, shelter and above all air conditioning (let alone Pokemon healing).

"Are you sure?" Hilbert asked, eyebrows raised as he got out of the car and walked straight into a wall of heat. "All the villas here look the same. How do you know this is Cynthia's?"

"He isn't Reece, you know," Looker commented drily as he shut the door and started walking, Croagunk sighing in relief on his shoulder as a light sea breeze blew in and took a little of the pain of the glaring sun away (his species liked dark, cool forest habitats, not dry and hot beaches). "He doesn't forget where people live."

"Hey!"

Alder smiled. "Besides, it isn't Cynthia's villa. It's Caitlin's. I've been here plenty of times before for meetings, but not to see Cynthia..."

As the others joined them, Hilda slipped into the conversation with ease. "Yeah, Iris and I were talking about this. Apparently Caitlin lets every female Gym Leader and Elite Four member come here in spring and summer, for parties and barbecues and drinks..."

"A woman's paradise," Matt noted, looking around at the team and its male majority. "Half of us might not be welcome here..."

Bastian grinned toothily. "Fine by me! I'll stay out here and go swimming!"

Looker sighed as Alder knocked. "Bastian, this isn't a vacation. We find Cynthia, arrest Giallo and go home. Simple."

Tash nodded. "We'll come back here when the job is done."

"The job? What job would this be?"

To the team the click of the door opening had been inaudible, the polite voice therefore shocking them, but Looker, hidden out of the line of the sight of the person inside as he leaned against the doorframe, had heard it, and was prepared.

He grinned, and raised his voice. "Oh, you know, just the usual. Cops and robbers, chasing the bad guys, nothing special..."

There was an intake of breath, almost a gasp, but the speaker did well to cover this. "Detective Looker. Is it really that bad in Unova that you've been dragged away from Sinnoh to help out here?"

Looker turned into the door's line of sight and looked into the cloudy grey eyes of a beautiful, serene woman, her long blonde hair falling elegantly down her back and framing her face as her black coat rustled around her black trousers, stirred by the sea breeze. Yet there was a familiar edge of determination to her, that spark that suggested she was somebody who loved every thrill, every twist of life, who enjoyed its journey and wanted to do as much as possible. "Champion Cynthia. Was it really that bad in Sinnoh that you'd consider going on holiday to the troubled region of Unova to get out of the firing line?"

Croagunk sniggered. "Croa!"

Cynthia tutted, mock-exasperated. "I am being insulted by your Croagunk. My new low..." She smiled faintly. "As nice at it is to see you both, I don't appreciate this- surely Champions are allowed some time off, aren't they?"

"Ask Alder," Matt muttered sardonically. "He knows a lot about it."

Looker started to open his mouth in shock at Matt's rudeness in front of two Champions, but Cynthia seemed not to mind- in fact, the faint smile that crossed her face grew. "You've got yourself a team Looker I see. The best officers in Unova..." Her face clouded over. "The situation really must be bad here with Team Plasma, if the man who saved Sinnoh isn't enough..."

"You and others helped a lot," Looker quickly said, trying to stay modest. "And so are my team here. I couldn't do it without them."

Cynthia smiled. "Still as modest as ever. Its good to see you again Looker."

Looker returned the hug that she gave him. "Likewise with you Cynthia. The old Team-busting partnership is back."

"I'd hate to break up an emotional reunion, ma'am," Tash said, stepping forward, "but we're here to escort Champion Alder to his meeting with you."

Cynthia laughed. "A Police escort, Alder? You never struck me as the type."

Alder smiled slowly, shaking Cynthia's hand. "Times are hard Cynthia. I need all the help I can get, especially with the Plasma crisis."

Cynthia nodded, gesturing to welcome him in. "I know. I've been watching the news, but they are too quiet; from what I've heard from Unovans however Plasma are stronger than they appear. I have a feeling Ghetsis' army will take up a lot of our meeting today..."

Alder nodded, turning to the team. "Indeed. But Looker and the team are not here to escort me safely- they came to accompany me because I agreed that I will help them on one last mission, another of their assignments taking place here in Undella Town. Our meeting will have to take place afterwards."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow, intrigued, and Looker remembered how curious and fascinated by mysteries she was. "Oh really? More saving the nation, Looker?"

Looker shrugged. "Perhaps." Then he turned to face her and gaze into her eyes. "And I would much appreciate if you were to accompany us and assist us, Champion Cynthia."

There was a pause.

"Looker what're you doing?" Tash hissed. "She's technically a civilian! She's not supposed to know about what we're doing!"

"And she's the Champion of a foreign region!" Matt whispered urgently. "A politician, a world leader!"

"Do you have any idea the amount of diplomatic shit we'd stir up if something happened to her?" Bastian muttered.

Cynthia stood in the doorway looking amused by the proceedings. "Is there a problem?"

Looker shook his head. "No Cynthia. My team are apparently uncertain whether enlisting a foreign region's Champion to aid in a criminal investigation is 1, protocol or 2, wise."

Cynthia smiled. "Perhaps not." Then she shrugged dismissively, all of her long hair and coat (unsuited to the Undella heat) whipping as she did so. "But then again, an exception could be made for a good case. If its necessary and interesting, I don't see the problem."

Croagunk looked smug on Looker's shoulder as the team looked shocked; oblivious to this behind him, Looker continued. "I believe it is both. Personally I think you will find it a very appealing mission..." He paused. "Do you know about Team Plasma's Seven Sages?"

"Only what I know on the news," she replied. "Ghetsis was their leader, and they were the overall leaders of Team Plasma, masquerading as King N's advisors. Ghetsis was arrested by you, but the others are on the run; nobody in the press or the public knows their identities because the Police are hushing them up." She paused. "I take it they're important people then?"

Looker nodded. "Six of the wisest, most influential old men in the world, powerful businessmen allied to Ghetsis' cause. We have arrested four of them so far..."

"Four?" Cynthia interrupted, looking shocked. "Are you serious Looker? You've been here a week and arrested FOUR?!"

Looker brushed the stunned compliment aside. "However, two of the Sages remain at large. We have tracked the last one down here to Undella, and since Champion Alder was intending to leave us to go here, we thought we'd accompany him to you and then go on for our mission. I however came to request your assistance."

Cynthia looked thoughtful. "Oh, so you need my help arresting this Sage?"

"Uh-huh," Reece said, cutting in before Looker. "He's reportedly the most powerful of all the Sages, perhaps even stronger than Ghetsis, and considering Champion Alder here had his work cut out beating one of the weaker Sages, it'd be best to get insurance, and have two Champions taking on this Sage."

The Sinnoh Champion mulled this over, as the Unova Champion stood by her side, sweating in the Undella heat. "Interesting... I'm up for it. Who is this mysterious Sage, this powerful old man you talk about?"

Looker and Croagunk grinned at the same time.

"That's the clincher," Looker said. "That's what will get you really interested. This mysterious old man with incredibly strong Pokemon... is Alessandro Giallo."

Cynthia looked stunned. "... H-him?!"

Alder nodded. "Yes indeed. The man who would have been Champion of Johto had the move to found a separate League succeeded. He is one of Team Plasma. And he is here."

"Cynthia, I know you," Looker cut in, pressing on. "You are Champion of Sinnoh, a fantastic battler, fascinated by mysteries and doing what's right. But you are also exceptionally competitive- on the way here I sneaked a look at Alder's schedule, to see that you have arranged a battle with him, Sinnoh vs Unova. You'll battle anything and anyone, and you want not to be known as the best that Sinnoh has to offer, but the best in the world. Your determination to come out on top is extraordinary."

Cynthia smiled. "That's true.."

Looker nodded. "And that's why you'll want to help us today. Giallo was going to be a Champion, the best Trainer in all of Johto; now's your chance to beat him. Today you take on one of the finest Pokemon Trainers around, to reassert yourself as one of the best, to show how strong you really are- you would not shy away from such an opportunity. I know it."

"And I won't," Cynthia said, pulling herself to her full height and tugging her coat aside to reveal six shining Luxury Balls, ready and waiting for battle. "It's time to take down yet another criminal threat."

Alder smiled. "Time to make Sinnoh proud of their Champion. Time to prove your ability to my region..."

Tash clapped her hands, putting her Xtransceiver away. "Alright folks, this is it. Giallo is here in Undella, according to our intel, and Danny just rang to confirm there is no change in that fact. Let's separate, split up and comb the area looking for him. There aren't that many hiding places here, not even in the holiday rush, but leave no stone unturned. We are coming out of here with a victory and an arrested Sage, no matter what it takes! Got it?"

Looker nodded. "You heard her team. The one thing we have on Giallo is surprise- he won't expect us or see us coming. However, to achieve this we need to blend in more- I'm not talking disguises, but several Policemen in uniform stand out, as do I. Cynthia and Alder can probably get away with it- nobody knows they're involved with this investigation- as can Hilbert and Hilda, but the rest of us need to change."

Wordlessly Looker's case of disguises was passed to him, and Reece looked up at him as Cynthia disappeared into the villa. "Anything in there of use, boss?"

"What, a surfboard? Swimming trunks?" Matt joked, gesturing at the small case.

Croagunk made a series of complicated gestures and points at Tash that translated as 'A bikini for Tash?'.

Looker sighed. "Croagunk, who do you take me for? Do I look like I carry a bikini around with me everyday?" He turned to the team, reluctantly pulling off his trademark coat as he did so. "Don't say anything to answer that... Top layers in here folks. Anything with Police insignia, jackets, hats, equipment... We're going plain-clothes."

Cynthia returned from the inside of the villa and shut the door behind her, as a shoeless Looker clad in a black T-shirt and trousers finished packing the case and stood up, surrounded by the now plainly-clothed team. "You'll be wanting these, guys. Disguise and protection."

"Nice shades," Bastian said approvingly, as everyone (including Croagunk) put the sunglasses on. "Thank you."

Looker nodded, shouldering the case and turning to face the beach, as Alder reappeared from the side of the villa with a surfboard. "Excellent. Now we look like a tourist business meeting."

"Better than Policemen," Tash commented, pushing her blonde hair from beneath the sunglasses. "Giallo won't expect us looking like this."

"That's true," Looker replied, before turning to the beach. "Right! Let's go get Giallo!"

As the team started to fan out behind Looker and Croagunk as they advanced towards the sandy beach and the crowds that concealed a wanted fugitive, a criminal old man, Looker overheard the conversation taking place behind him between Hilbert, Hilda, Cynthia and Alder. Apparently Hilbert, being a huge fan of Cynthia's battling style, was using the opportunity of her being in the region to challenge her to a battle, and Looker imagined her infamous Garchomp taking on the Legendary Reshiram. The Hero of Truth versus the Champion of Sinnoh... Looker tried not to smile as even while attempting to protect Unova from criminal threats, its greatest Trainers organised exhibition battles to take each other on for a bit of fun competition. Yet somehow at the back of his mind the nagging feeling remained- who was to say that Unova would be safe for their battle? If they didn't succeed capturing Giallo and Rood, the Sages' dire plan would come into play, and Looker dreaded to think what price failure would pay in the end...

"Good morning signor! Can I help you in any way?"

Looker sighed as he heard that polite, precise voice by his side, as the crowd swept him along over the sand towards the few remaining sun beds that hadn't been conquered by the Hoennese tourists and their towels that seemed to claim half the beach in their absence. "No thank you, sir. Just looking for a friend."

"Perhaps I could help you with that? Or find you a sunbed while you wait for them?"

"I'm quite alright, I assure you..."

"Or maybe you'd care for some light refreshment?" the voice beside him continued happily, seemingly oblivious to his protests as whoever it was rummaged in a bag. "Would you care for an ice cream?" There was a chuckle. "My friends send me these from Castelia..."

"Really? Well, that's nice of them," Looker said mildly, not really paying attention. Then, as Croagunk started growling, he got the Castelia hint. Then he got the 'signor'. "Oh..."

There was another, longer chuckle. "Hehe... now you see. Now you start-a to leesten, huh? You, mi amici, are like-a a feesh, sweeming against-a the current; you hold out-a for so long, but een the end eet ees useless."

"Very wise of you," Looker said carefully, his hands fiddling behind his back. "Very... sage..."

"Si, signor," the voice by his side said, the enunciation replaced by a sweet, melodic and flowing Italian accent as a hand guided Looker to a vacant sunbed and sat him down in it. "Well done een the end, Detective Looker..."

"Thank you," Looker said, not meaning it at all and looking up into a pair of eyes shining with aged mirth, set into the tanned face of a short brown-suited man with light silver hair and not too many wrinkles. "You found me quickly..."

Sage Giallo laughed, tossing his head back as he sat down beside Looker. "Generally, people who try-a to blend eento a crowd stand out a leettle. Especially wearing black on a beach, and weeth a Croagunk on their shoulder." He smiled, and handed Looker the Casteliacone. "Here, have the ice cream. Talking ees so much better over food, I find."

Looker's conscience cried out against taking a dessert from a criminal- his sweet tooth rebelled. "Thank you." After a bite of the delicious ice cream, he paused. "So what do you want to talk about, that's so important that you'll separate me from the others?"

"My past, and my future. Seemply put, I am-a worried and scared."

Looker raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? How come?"

Giallo sighed, looking out to sea. "Si... At first when I joined Team Plasma, I had-a one dream. I wanted to do-a something right for the world. Team Plasma offered me that chance; Ghetsees made me believe that we could build-a our own destiny, that we could shape-a Unova. I thought-a that I would become famous for what I deed, how I brought harmony to thees region, how I united people and Pokemon..."

"Why should I believe that, Giallo?" Looker asked, deliberately being harsh despite the fact that he was at ease talking to the Italian, that he trusted what he said.

Giallo sighed. "You shouldn't trust me... because you theenk-a that I'm a criminal. But I never wanted thees- I followed N's dream, I strived for peace, and instead I took-a the fall for Ghetsees."

"Go on..." Looker said, taking another lick of the Casteliacone.

"Team Plasma now... eet ees tearing eetself apart."

"Rood and Zinzolin are at odds over supporting Ghetsis, I know," Looker interrupted.

Giallo looked at him in awe. "... You are-a much cleverer than they theenk, Signor. To know that..." He shook himself. "Si, I know Rood wants to take over from Ghetsees, and that Zeenzoleen fanatically supports Ghetsees. Bronius ees on Zeenzoleen's side, Gorm swings to Rood's, and Ryoku hangs een the balance, undecided as to how to continue Team Plasma..."

"Let me guess," Looker said. "You don't want to continue, do you?"

"No. That Team has-a destroyed my name, turned me eento a scapegoat and a fugitive. I have had-a to run and hide, a former Champion deesgraced by the behaviour of hees allies. That ees why when I found you I deed not-a engage you een battle; I want-a a truce."

"A truce?" Now that surprised Looker.

Giallo nodded eagerly. "Si, si. I believe-a you can take down Plasma, find out their plan, and destroy them. But when the Sages stand trial, I do not want-a to be shamed for what they deed, for what I hated, for their crimes. I can change-a myself! I have-a a plan for a better future for me, for Unova, for us all, a way een wheech to redeem myself and start again. As each of us changes what ees een our power to change, so the world eetself changes! I weell make thees place better, eef you geeve-a me the chance!"

Looker thought about this for a second. "You want your name to be cleared?"

"Si. I weell offer you eenformation, names, schemes, everything I know-a about Team Plasma. And een return, no arrest, no charges; safe custody for me, and a promise of a chance of redemption."

Looker paused. "..."

Giallo smiled. "Please, Looker, mi amici, I beg you."

Looker sighed, having finally made up his mind. "I'm afraid I cannot do that Giallo. Team."

"Huh?" Giallo's face went somewhere between forlorn and betrayed as from all across the beach the black shirts of the Police converged on the sunbed, the Champions and the Nuvema Trainers joining them as Looker put his Xtransceiver away, the device that had alerted them all to their position. "Alder? C-cynthia? Looker what are you..."

"I'm sorry Giallo," Looker said, and he actually meant it. "I can see what you say is true, I would appreciate your information greatly, and I would love to help you make a brighter future, but we cannot change our pasts. You may not have agreed to it, but you were an accomplice to a criminal organisation, and willing or not you will face charges for what they did."

"No..." Giallo looked almost despairing. "Looker I trusted you..."

"I know. And I want to trust you. But our past cannot be rewritten, and it cannot be washed over, as hard as we try." Looker stood up, Croagunk taking the rest of the Casteliacone, and held out his hand to the distressed Giallo. "Come with us Giallo. Don't make a fuss, don't harm anyone here, don't become what you fight against- don't lower yourself to Plasma's level. Cooperate, provide us information, and remain quiet without causing trouble. We may not be able to help you, as Aurelius and the law are against you. We can't let you walk away, as unfortunate as it is. But we can make it as painless and as small a punishment as we deem fit..."

Giallo stood, slowly, drawing himself up to his full height. "... No... I weell not be arrested as a criminal. I am Alessandro Giallo, a free man, an eenocent man! I shall not-a be held accountable for the seens of my colleagues!"

"Don't do this Giallo..." Tash begged, as the Italian started to back away.

The Sage shook his head, a lone tear running down his cheek. "I... weell... not be guilty! If you cannot keep me free, or protect me, or help me een my darkest hour to strive for a better future, then I shall not be punished! Goodbye Looker!"

The word 'sprightly' is often used to describe old men and women with a lot of energy and better physical fitness than others- the word 'explosive' would have fitted Giallo. The Italian Sage wheeled on the balls of his feet and sped off at a blistering pace over the beach, his yellow tie flapping behind him as he ran, treading carelessly on sunbathers, sandcastles and picnic lunches strewn across the sand before him. Panicking, lost and alone, feeling frightened, angry and betrayed, Giallo had made his choice; he would run, like he had been made to do by Ghetsis. Freedom was his goal, improvement his future, and he would not stand by and let himself be held accountable. Looker knew this, saddened by the fact that he couldn't help someone who really appeared to need it, who really appeared to not be guilty, but Giallo had decided, and now they would have to chase him down and arrest him. A Sage on the run...

"Stop him! Don't let him get away!"

**A/N: Woo, tense drama bit between Giallo and Looker! :D and the reunion of Looker and Cynthia! If someone could tell me what that shipping title is I'd be most grateful, because I like them together! And as you can probably tell, I really enjoy writing Giallo especially out of the Sages (my 4th fic with him/them in!).**

**Next chapter- hunt him down and capture him! The most sad pursuit that Looker will ever undertake, but Giallo is a Team Plasma Sage! And they must capture him no matter what... Coming soon.. (I hope. Sooner than last time anyway :/)...**

**Thanks for reading and for being patient with me! A review is always appreciated, and until next time, adios amigos! :D**

**Sharkness**


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